Ferrari Interim CEO John Elkann Believes EVs Will Widen Company's Product Portfolio

Ferrari has historically been the quintessential internal combustion engine, car maker. It is possibly the most iconic carmaker in the world but its transition to electric power trains has been slow and greatly delayed. It is slated to launch its first EV in 2025. In its Q2 earnings, the interim CEO and its controlling stakeholder John Elkann revealed that he is quite alright with the proposed bans around cars with internal combustion engines across the EU. Many countries like the UK have set deadlines for 2053 to ban vehicles based on the internal combustion engine. 

John Elkann who has been the interim CEO of Ferrari since December 2020 will hand over the reins of Ferrari to Benedetto Vigna and will move into his Chairman role, but Vigna will join in September. In the last earnings call, before he steps aside from the day to day running of the company, he told Reuters that he saw electrification as an opportunity to differentiate Ferrari's product portfolio even more.

Vigna will be Ferrari's next CEO starting on the job on September 

"We see the regulation as welcome. The opportunity set by electrification, electronics and other technologies that are coming available will allow us to make even more distinct and unique products," he said. 

Ferrari in its earnings report also revealed that sales of its sports cars had recovered and it posted a revenue of $458 million exceeding expectations of analysts. Its first electric car is still a couple of years away, but the hiring of legendary semiconductor designer Benedetto Vigna hints that Elkann wants to embrace electrification immediately. Vigna joins from STMicroelectronics. 

The 296 GTB is the latest plugin hybrid by the prancing horse

Currently, Ferrari has four hybrid cars in its portfolio like the SF90 Stradale, the SF90 Spider, the 296 GTB and the LaFerrari. 

Elkann also noted that he was happy with the performance of the Formula One team that was building towards the 2022 season to win the world championship after a gap of 14 years. Elkann's family has a controlling stake in Ferrari and has a majority stake in Stellantis through their holding company Exor of which he is the CEO.