We must emulate Spain, said the manager of Chinese brands.

We need to follow Spain’s example by investing in renewables to reduce energy costs. This is according to Marco Santucci, head of Jameel Motors Italia, an importer of major Chinese brands such as Geely and Zeekr.

We must emulate Spain with competitive energy prices

Santucci is a veteran executive in the automotive industry. Most recently, he led Jaguar Italia before joining Jameel Motors. At the Green & Net Zero Talk hosted by RCS Academy, he explained why Italy’s electric vehicle registrations remain at only 7-8%, while France is at 41% and Germany at 34%. “The automotive crisis in Europe doesn’t stem from Chinese manufacturers entering the market now. It comes from at least five years of lack of progress in a clear direction. Spain is currently the only country that has managed to attract automobile manufacturing plants that didn’t go to Eastern Europe. Why? Because it has very low energy costs. And why are its energy costs so low? Because years ago it began investing in renewable energy development. Then there’s electric vehicles, of course: if you look at all automobile manufacturers’ production plans, that’s where we’re heading.”

You can't search for gasoline in the garden, while renewable energy...

But why should Europe choose the electric vehicle route, which is so opposed in Italy? “Because it’s a more efficient vehicle. And because there’s no possibility in Europe to dig in the garden and produce gasoline, while with renewable energy sources that option still exists. Moreover, the vehicle is much cheaper, both industrially and in terms of operating costs. Electric cars in China are far more affordable than internal combustion engine cars. The only reason they’re not that much cheaper in Italy is that we add 30% tariffs in Europe. I believe Italy, of all European countries, is the one that could benefit most from positioning itself as an eco-sustainable country. By focusing on electric and renewable mobility, as Spain has done. We have the opportunity to close this gap. We simply need to have a long-term vision for Italy as a country.”

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