Last Updated on Wednesday, 3 April, 2019 at 1:59 pm by Christian Keszthelyi
As electric vehicles (EVs) quietly swish on our roads disrupting how we think about transportation, the Maltese government recently put its foot down and showed initial commitment towards turning the country into a lower-emission — if not zero-emission — zone. Answering the enquiry of Business Malta, Porsche applauded the Maltese vision, underlining the importance of
“Seeing the news about the plans of the Maltese government once again shows the importance of electromobility [eMobility] and its demand in the markets,” Porsche AG tells Business Malta when asked how they feel about Malta’s recent EV buzz.
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced during the first eMobility Summit in Malta that the government nurtures unique plans for getting rid of traditional cars in the future. The prime minister mentioned the possibility of running a pilot on the sister island Gozo, turning it into a completely electric vehicle zone, and trying to replicate the project in Malta to set an example for countries worldwide.
For Porsche, electrification and hybridisation play an essential role in the product portfolio, and they systematically expand their offering in this field, BM learns from the car manufacturer. “If the markets continue to develop as they have been doing, then up to 50% of the entire Porsche product range could be available as electric or partly electric petrol hybrids by 2025,” the manufacturer says about its global plans.
Hybrid models already account for over 60% of vehicles from the Panamera range sold in Europe, while the first fully-electric sports car — the Taycan — will roll out onto the markets at the end of 2019, possibly reaching Malta by 2020. This would be followed by its first derivative: the Taycan Cross Turismo, Porsche AG says.
“By 2022 we will have invested more than €6bn in electromobility, focusing on both plug-in hybrids and purely electric vehicles. Once again a clear signal that we will continue
The cover image shows the Mission E concept car; the starting point of the first fully-electric sports car Porsche Taycan, which will be available in Malta in 2020. (source: Porsche AG Media)
