After its electric car, Ferrari confirms it will invest in biofuels

Ferrari will launch two new models by the end of 2026 and has already tested carbon-neutral fuels in its combustion engines. The announcement was made by the automaker’s chief executive, Benedetto Vigna, on the second-quarter earnings call, held on Thursday (30). The brand did not reveal which cars will be or which engines have passed the tests.

The pair of launches reinforces the strategy of technological neutrality that Maranello has defended since 2022: instead of betting on a single path, the manufacturer maintains combustion, hybrid and electric models in parallel. This quarter, it presented precisely the two extremes of this range: the Ferrari Luce, its first series-production electric car, and the 12Cilindri Manuale, which rescues the manual transmission.

Biofuels enter the account

Biofuels, Vigna said, are in the group of carbon-neutral fuels and “work well in our engines.” According to the executive, the company has already evaluated different types of these alternatives and there has been no loss of performance. He did not say which formulations were used or in which engines, and Ferrari did not disclose a deadline for any commercial application.

The interest has an explanation: neutral fuels make it possible to cut emissions without retiring internal combustion, a sensitive argument for a clientele that associates the brand with the roar of the engine. Alternatives of this type are at the center of the European discussion about the end of the sale of combustion cars, scheduled for 2035.

The electric bet, in turn, had a divided reception. The Luce, a four-engine liftback presented in Rome, was criticized by some fans and received with suspicion by the financial market, but had the global quota of 2026 exhausted, with orders from China already advancing to 2027.

Two unnamed releases

Specialized publications bet that one of the planned models will be a removable roof version of the F80, a hybrid hypercar of about 1,217 hp, and that the other will derive from the 12Cilindri. Ferrari does not confirm any of the hypotheses. It is the house’s practice to keep the details confidential until the presentation, which usually results in limited series sold out even before the public premiere.

The quarter’s numbers help to sustain the pace of launches. Net revenue totaled 1.938 billion euros, up 8%, and net income rose 9% to 463 million euros. Ebitda advanced 7% to 755 million euros, with a margin of 39%. Deliveries, however, fell to 3,366 units, reflecting the change of generations in part of the line.

What compensated for the lower volume was the sale of made-to-order items: customizations accounted for about 20% of revenue from cars and parts. As the result exceeded market estimates, the company raised its projections for the year and now expects revenue of approximately 7.6 billion euros and adjusted EBITDA of at least 2.97 billion euros.