Ferrari promises 'even more unique' cars in the shift to electric

Electric and hybrid models should make up 80% of Ferrari's sales by 2030, the luxury carmaker told investors on Thursday, vowing to produce "even more unique" cars as it makes the expensive shift to zero-emission models. "We believe we can use the electric engine to enhance the performance of our cars," Chief Executive Benedetto Vigna said on Thursday as he unveiled the company's long-awaited new business plan.

Electric and hybrid models should make up 80% of Ferrari's sales by 2030, the luxury carmaker told investors on Thursday, vowing to produce "even more unique" cars as it makes the expensive shift to zero-emission models.

"We believe we can use the electric engine to enhance the performance of our cars," Chief Executive Benedetto Vigna said on Thursday as he unveiled the company's long-awaited new business plan. Vigna confirmed the Italian carmaker's plans to launch its first electric model in 2025, and Ferrari said it would launch 15 new models from 2023 to 2026.

"Everything we do will always focus on being distinctively Ferrari," company chairman John Elkann said in opening remarks. "The opportunity set of electrification and electronics will allow us to make even more unique cars." Ferrari expects fully-electric cars will make up 5% of sales in 2025 and 40% in 2030, Vigna said. Hybrid models should rise to 55% of sales in 2025 from 20% in 2021, before dropping to 40% in 2030.

Vigna said Ferrari would develop and build its own electric motors, inverters and battery modules for its electric models on a new assembly line at its plant in Maranello, Italy, while outsourcing non-core components to partners. Faced with looming bans on fossil-fuel vehicles in Europe and China, major automakers have committed to spend more than $250 billion through 2025 on the shift to electrification, according to industry estimates.

Ferrari said it expects to invest 4.4 billion euros ($4.58 billion) by 2026, most of that on product development, while delivering EBITDA (core earnings) of 2.5-2.7 billion euros by that year. The carmaker expects cumulated free cash flow of 4.6-4.9 billion euros from 2022 to 2026. Like other makers of sports cars, Ferrari's challenge goes beyond just the huge capital investments necessary to develop electric models that can match their high-performance fossil-fuel forebears.

Ferrari also sells an emotional experience to wealthy customers centred around the throaty roar of a powerful engine. Customers and investors both like what Ferrari does today, with a long order book for cars that start from over 200,000 euros.

Shares in Ferrari have been almost flat in the past 12 months, versus an 18% drop for the European auto index and a 13% drop for the luxury index. On the journey to electric sports cars, Ferrari needs to make sure its high-net worth customers and investors are along for the ride.

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