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BMW CEO, Oliver Zipse, believes phasing out the combustion engine too soon won’t be beneficial for “the climate or anyone else.”
In a closed door meeting with a group of politicians in the Bundestag, Zipse said that the combustion engine is still by far the most popular, and that phasing it out too soon won’t benefit the environment, or anyone else for that matter.
He says the phase out of the combustion engine must be a gradual and planned process. “The largest market segment in absolute terms by a wide margin in Germany, but also in Europe and worldwide, is the internal combustion engine” he says. “Before you simply shut something like that down within eight or ten years, you have to know well what you’re doing.”
“If you try to ban this technology in Germany and Europe, but the world market is not even that far, you will lose this technology in the world market as well. That’s why we also warn against doing this too early and not giving the transformation a chance to develop with the markets. It would be harmful to simply give up a technology in which you have a global market position without need. I don’t think that would help the climate or anyone else.”
BMW is currently at the forefront of traditional premium automakers and EVs thanks to its “i” brand, however it’s clear that the brand won’t be stopping it’s combustion engine production any time soon.
But that doesn’t mean the automaker isn’t making efforts to reduce emissions. BMW is developing next-generation petrol and diesel engines which promise to be more efficient.
The automaker will continue to provide ICE vehicles alongside its all-electric range for the foreseeable future.
Keyword: BMW CEO warns against phasing out ICE too early