CEO Benedetto Vigna recently put Ferrari’s first electric prototype through its paces. Vigna was cagey with details of his experience in an interview with Bloomberg, but he did offer this tease: “I like it a lot, and I’m happy because you cannot see what I’m seeing in my memory.”
The stakes are high for Ferrari‘s electric venture, given the company’s worldwide reputation for producing exquisite 12-cylinder engines. Vigna, who joined Ferrari just two years ago from chipmaker STMicroelectronics, emphasized that the company is not afraid to change. Instead, he talks about the brand’s R&D, manufacturing, and marketing all having a “strong enthusiasm” and “ingenuity” vibe.
While this will be Ferrari’s first fully electric model, the company is certainly not new to the electrification scene. By the end of the second quarter, 43 percent of Ferrari sales were hybrids, an impressive figure. Given the current rate of growth, Ferrari’s prediction from last year that hybrids would account for about 55% of the company’s sales by 2026 may have been too conservative. Even mythical figures can be caught off guard by how quickly technology advances.
Obviously, Ferrari has bigger and better plans for electric vehicles than just its first attempt. Vigna, in keeping with his notoriously secretive nature, has chosen to keep the company’s battery cell supplier a closely guarded secret. He said that the partnership’s primary criteria were competence and innovation.
Vigna elaborated on the battery packs, electric motors, electronics, and assembly that will be developed in-house by Ferrari for its electric model. The engineers working on the next-gen EV are being very thorough. The process will begin with test mules, move on to more refined prototypes, and then culminate in a big reveal in late 2025.
Ferrari is building a state-of-the-art factory in Maranello, northern Italy, to house its electric vision. This plant will be the birthplace of hybrid and electric Ferraris and is scheduled to open in June 2024.