Two lessons on industrial policy from Mazda. The first, that politics must set objectives and limits for the industry, but then it must leave it free to pursue them with its best technological innovation. The second, that the future is made up of questions rather than answers, so research should be encouraged in several directions, rather than being forced into just one, since it is never certain where the solutions will come from.
According to the house of the Rising Sun it is not certain that the future is all electric. Electric mobility, if powered by renewable energy, is in fact an effective tool to reduce emissions, especially in cities. However, the reality is that in most European markets a significant share of the energy mix still comes from fossil fuels. In addition, charging an electric vehicle outside the home is still a challenge in many places in Europe.
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But the barriers to electric cars, in addition to the price and charging stations, are also cultural. The motorist feels that he must adopt a different paradigm in the use of the car, depending on the recharge, the autonomy and the domestic wall-box. To break down cultural barriers, Mazda has created a one-stop shop to help familiarize you with electric cars.
In short, electrification yes, but it is not enough. In order to achieve the long-term goal of climate neutrality, it seems necessary to exploit all the opportunities for reducing emissions by using various technologies. The future is multi-solution and research must continue in all directions, without focusing only on electric cars. In 2030, 25% of Mazda cars will be fully electric, but for the other cars, which will still be hybrid, some surprises are announced, also based on the rotary engine that will play an important role in hybridization.
And then there is the circulating park. In Italy there are just under 40 million cars, of which almost half have been registered in the last 12 years: but do we really want to believe that we can reduce CO2 only through electrification? Thermal engines are clean or dirty depending on what they burn.