Amid The Rise Of EV Developments, BMW: We Keep ICE Machines

BMW M4 CSL. (Doc. BMW Group)

JAKARTA - The development of electric vehicles (EVs) and environmentally friendly is currently massive and raises questions about the fate of internal combustion machines (ICE) for the next few years. However, manufacturers like BMW still seem to want to maintain this system.

Oliver Zipse, CEO of BMW Group, said that his party did not want to rush to stop the ICE engine just for the sake of a pure EV. Of course this statement is quite surprising considering the German company is determined to move on to electrification.

"We don't want to delete combustion engines," Zipse was quoted as saying by the BMW Blog, Thursday, December 14.

Furthermore, he defended BMW's approach which stated that this move was not a doubt, but a strategic plan to avoid an early cessation of products that still have market relevance.

While BMW aims to increase its share of electric car sales from 15 percent to 50 percent by 2030, Zipse argues that it doesn't need to just focus on EVs amid increasing demand for this segment.

The man from Germany supports the company's efforts to implement multi-path strategies. He believes that this is in line with the goals of international climate protection, as evidenced by the Scientific Based Targets Initiative (SBTI) which expresses the company's commitment to limiting global warming.

Although SBTI recommends gradual cessation of combustion engine production by 2040, Zipse argues that sudden cessation of combustion engines could cause consumers to keep their old cars for a longer period of time, stressing the importance of considering a global fleet that currently amounts to more than 1.2 billion combustion engine vehicles.

He also emphasized the importance of synthetic fuels (e-fuels) for combustion engines in the future. Zipse stated that mass removal of combustion engines could hinder the application of sustainable technology.

Of course, this stance is quite contrary to its arch rivals, such as Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen, which have reduced their interest in ICE machines and plan to produce more EVs by the end of the decade.