BMW CEO Oliver Zipse Warns Of The Perils Of An EV Only Future

BMW's boss Oliver Zipse hasn't been a big fan of going all-in on electric cars. He has often warned about the impact of going fully in of electric powertrains and has been against banning cars based on the internal combustion engine as it would be bad for German automotive giants financially that they may not be able to invest properly for an EV first future. On the sidelines of the New York Auto Show, he expressed his aversion to going fully towards electric vehicles again and warned of certain consequences that many may have not thought about. 

"When you look at the technology coming out, the EV push, we must be careful because, at the same time, you increase dependency on very few countries. If someone cannot buy an EV for some reason but needs a car, would you rather propose he continues to drive his old car forever? If you are not selling combustion engines anymore, someone else will," said Zipse eluding to the fact that most of the battery supply for EVs is coming out of China. 

BMW's i4 has been critically acclaimed for its build quality and driving dynamics 

Zipse did admit that internal combustion engine-based vehicles have to get more efficient both for cost reasons and the environment. Oil prices have skyrocketed globally in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine but Zipse believes these rates may not remain for a long time. 

"We have a peak now, they might not stay at the peak, but they will not go back to former prices. How much energy you need and use, and circularity, is important - for environmental reasons but even more for economic reasons," he added. 

This year BMW has launched a couple of EVs. Of all the German automotive majors BMW perhaps was the first one to develop electric powertrains but it hasn't made a lot of headway with EVs. Its latest offering like the i4 and iX has however made an impression on the market in Europe.