Porsche to significantly increase its electric share. To ensure that the 911 with combustion engine has a future, the product line will be provided with special fuel.

保时捷将显著提升其电动汽车的份额。同时，内燃机 911 将采用特殊的合成燃料，以保证在未来仍占据一席之地。

 

It has become noticeably quieter than usual in front of the Porsche headquarters in Stuttgart. Many parking spaces are deserted, the stricter home office rules make for empty offices. Despite this, Porsche CEO Oliver Blume still holds the interview at the headquarters – in a large meeting room on the first floor of the administrative building with a lot of fresh air, social distancing and masks.

保时捷位于德国斯图加特的总部大楼前明显比往日安静了许多。很多停车位都空着，更加严格的居家办公规定令办公室显得空空荡荡。尽管如此，保时捷全球执行董事会主席奥博穆先生（Oliver Blume）仍选择在总部接受采访——在行政大楼一层的一间大会议室里，空气清新，人们戴着口罩，保持着社交距离。

Mr. Blume, in the past year Porsche started with electrification with the Taycan. What’s next?

We have a marathon called transformation ahead of us. We have taken our first big step with the Taycan, and more will follow in the years to come. The all-electric Macan will be the next big milestone. In 2025, around 50 percent of the cars we deliver will be electrically powered. The majority of these will be fully electric sports cars, with the remainder being sporty plug-in hybrids.

问：奥博穆先生，在过去的一年里，保时捷的电气化以Taycan为开始。那么下一步呢?

奥博穆：我们面对的是一场称之为变革的马拉松。Taycan是我们迈出的第一大步，未来几年还会有更多的产品问世，纯电版Macan将会是下一个重要里程碑。预计到 2025 年，我们交付的新车中大约一半将是电动车，其中以纯电动跑车为主、插电式混动车型为辅。

 

What is your share of electrification so far?

It’s looking really good. In Europe, one third of our cars were delivered as electric vehicles last year, half of them fully electric and half as hybrids. Compared to the previous year, this is an increase of 60 percent – our electric strategy is working. We have succeeded in transporting the sportiness typical of Porsche to the new electric models. We wanted to sell 20,000 Taycans in 2020 and achieved this goal despite coronavirus. The feedback from customers and experts is very positive. It is important to experience the vehicle.

问：目前保时捷交付的新车里有多少是电动车？

奥博穆：现在的情况很不错。去年，我们在欧洲交付的新车中有三分之一是电动车，其中一半是纯电动，另一半是插混车型。与前一年相比，电动车销量增加了 60% ——这说明我们的电气化战略卓有成效。我们成功地将典型的保时捷跑车运动风格传承至全新的纯电动车型。尽管面对全球性疫情挑战，我们还是完成了 2020 年交付 20,000 台Taycan的目标，客户和行业专家的反馈都很正面积极。实际体验这款车的驾控是十分重要的。

 

What is being planned for the longer term, until 2025?

For us, the exclusivity of our sports cars is key. Unit numbers are not a relevant factor. But it is no secret that we will eventually sell more than 300,000 cars per year. Without coronavirus, we could probably have done that as early as 2020. But we have also set ourselves a market ceiling: Porsche always had a global market share of around 0.3 percent. We intend to base our figures on that in the future, too.

问：到2025年的长期计划是什么呢？

奥博穆：对我们来说，保证保时捷跑车的豪华独特性是核心，销量并不是一个关键因素。然而毫无疑问，我们最终每年将会卖出 30 万台以上的保时捷。如果没有新冠疫情，我们可能在 2020 年的销量就达到了这个数字。但我们也给自己设定了一个市场占有率的上限：保时捷占全球市场份额将一直维持在 0.3% 左右。我们将来也会基于这个份额设定销售目标。

 

The sales of the electric model Taycan have taken off, as you say. Do you have the required capacity in Stuttgart?

At the moment, we can flexibly produce more than 30,000 cars. In the end, the customers will decide with their orders how many cars it will eventually be.

问：如你所说，Taycan这款纯电动跑车的销量正在攀升。目前在斯图加特的工厂拥有足够的产能吗？

奥博穆：目前，我们的弹性产能已经超过 30,000 台。客户的订单量将决定最终产量。

 

You don’t want to compare yourself with Tesla?

I think Tesla’s development is impressive. Elon Musk is a cool guy and a great entrepreneur. Tesla is pursuing a different strategy and wants to achieve high unit numbers. That’s why new factories are being built all over the world. Porsche will maintain its exclusivity and smaller numbers. We fulfil the individual dreams of our customers.

问：你不想与特斯拉作个比较吗？

奥博穆：我认为特斯拉的发展是惊人的。埃隆·马斯克是一个很酷的人，也是一位出色的企业家。特斯拉追求的是不同的策略，希望实现更高的销量。这也是他们正在全世界各地兴建工厂的原因。而保时捷将始终保持品牌的豪华独特性和相对低的产量。我们致力于实现每一位客户专属的个人梦想。

 

But they are competitors. Have you gained Tesla customers with the Taycan?

We succeeded in that. However, when we developed our Taycan, Tesla was not the benchmark. We have always focused on our own products. For us, our guiding principle was that an electric Porsche must drive like a 911. This is something our customers can look forward to.

问：但二者是竞品，请问Taycan是否分流了特斯拉的客户呢？

奥博穆：我们的确赢得了一些客户。但我们一直专注自身，特斯拉并不是我们研发Taycan时的对标。对我们来说，首要原则一直是打造出一台拥有和911同样驾驶感受的纯电版保时捷——这也是我们客户所期待的。

 

As part of Volkswagen, Porsche also has more clout than Tesla. However, it is surprising that the Group is using two dozen different formats for battery cells. How can such confusion happen?

We currently have a lot of battery variants and are already looking at them. You have to bear in mind that when we started planning electric cars a few years ago, there was not much experience in this technology and there were different approaches. With the knowledge we have today, we can look into the future and come to the right conclusions.

问：作为大众集团的一部分，保时捷的影响力也比特斯拉大。不过令人惊讶的是，大众集团内部使用了二十多种不同规格的电池。怎么会出现这样的情况呢？

奥博穆：目前集团内部的确有很多电池规格，我们也已经关注到这方面了。要知道，我们几年前开始着手电动汽车研发时，这项技术方面并没有太多经验，那时候存在着不同的方法。时至今日，在现有知识储备下，我们可以展望未来并得出正确的结论。

 

What exactly does that mean?

For the Volkswagen Group, we are standardising the geometric battery format with different performance ranges that are differentiated based on the chemistry inside the cell. The basis will be a cost-optimised volume battery, and there will also be a performance battery and a high-performance battery for the high-end segment. Porsche is especially committed to high power and energy densities for particularly sporty vehicles. The battery is the combustion chamber of tomorrow.

问：具体结论是指？

奥博穆：对于大众汽车集团来说，我们正在根据电池内部的化学成分划分不同的性能等级，以此将几何电池规格标准化。基础款将会是成本优化的量产电池，还将有针对高端市场的性能版电池和高性能版电池。保时捷尤其致力于专为跑车提供的高功率和高能量密度的电池。电池其实就是未来的燃烧室。

 

When will this be implemented?

A period of five years is realistic for the implementation of this concept, and we have already taken the relevant strategic decisions. Let us not deceive ourselves: in the coming years, there will be a major challenge to overcome in the field of battery cells, because there is a lack of capacity throughout the industry.

这将何时实施？

五年的时间对这一概念的实施是现实的，我们已经作出了相关战略决定。我们一定要认清一点：在未来的几年里，电池领域需要克服一个重大挑战，因为整个行业都面临产能欠缺。

 

How has Porsche’s role in the VW group as a whole developed?

Porsche has been part of the Volkswagen Group for a good decade now. During this time, a lot of positive things have happened. We benefit from economies of scale, for example when purchasing parts. The Group in turn benefits financially from Porsche. Our operating result has increased fivefold in this decade. We have developed from a junior partner to the most profitable brand in the Group. At the same time, this is a great responsibility. What Porsche generates also supports the transformation in other brands. True teamwork.

保时捷在整个大众集团中所扮演的角色有何变化？

保时捷成为大众汽车集团的一员已有十年之久。在此期间取得了很多积极的成果。我们从规模经济中受益，比如零部件采购。整个集团也因保时捷的加入而在财务上获益。我们的销售利润在这十年里增长了五倍，从一个初级合作伙伴成长为集团中利润率最高品牌。同时，这也意味着重大的责任，保时捷也支持了其他品牌的转型。这是真正的团队合作。

 

Are there also other areas in which Porsche is the ultimate benchmark in the Group?

Porsche is at the cutting edge of technology. We offer cutting-edge technologies as a service provider for other brands. Examples are the most innovative electric models. The Taycan provides the technical basis for the Audi etron-GT. The hybrid platform for the Bentley Continental, Convertible and Flying Spur comes from the Porsche Panamera. We also work for the Group at a strategic level: as a small manufacturer, we can be bolder and faster. We initiated the transformation to electric mobility at a very early stage and are a driving force behind the Group’s strategy.

在其他哪些领域保时捷也是集团的标杆呢?

保时捷走在技术领域的前沿。我们为其他品牌提供顶尖技术服务。最具创新性的纯电动车型就是一项很好的例证。Taycan为奥迪的etron-GT提供了技术基础；宾利欧陆、飞驰等车型的混合动力架构则借鉴了保时捷Panamera。我们还在战略层面为集团工作：作为一家小型的跑车制造商，我们可以更大胆、更迅捷。我们在很早的时候就启动向电气化转型，成为集团战略的推动力。

 

What is your situation as regards coronavirus?

We need to be resolute now, and everyone has to make the best of it. Coronavirus is a stress test for all of us and health is paramount. In the automotive industry, the pandemic clearly shows who’s done their homework. Before and during the crisis. With our daily crisis management we were able to keep our company on track. It was also important for us to support society with the worldwide “Porsche helps” programme. Clear leadership, strong teamwork and real fighting spirit are more in demand than ever.

关于新冠疫情，目前应对状况如何呢？

我们现在要很坚定，每个人都要好好把握当下。新冠疫情是对我们所有人的严峻考验，健康是最重要的。在汽车行业，疫情清楚地展现出，在危机发生前和危机中，谁认真完成了自己的功课。通过日常危机管理，我们得以维持公司的正常运作。通过全球范围的“保时捷援助”项目来支援社会也很重要。明晰的领导力、强大的团队合作和真正的拼搏精神比任何时候都更加重要。

 

Did Porsche react quickly enough?

Yes, we did. Reacting quickly is important, but so is acting pragmatically – for example as regards costs. We were able to lower our break-even point further. At the same time, our sporty and innovative product range gives us a strong tailwind. All in all, we have done very well. The annual financial statement is always a bit like school report day. We are confident of achieving a double-digit return despite coronavirus. This is what we have been fighting for all year.

保时捷的反应够快吗?

是的,我们做到了。迅速做出反应很重要，但务实的行动也很重要——例如在成本方面，我们做到了进一步降低收支平衡点。同时，我们极具运动性和和创新力的产品给我们提供了强大的推动力。总的来说，我们做得非常好。年度财务报告总是有点像学校的成绩报告。我们有信心在新冠疫情下实现两位数的销售回报率，这是我们奋斗了一年的目标。

 

And when coronavirus is over, do you plan to achieve the usual profit margin of 15 percent again?

The 15 percent will remain our strategic goal in the future, too. Even if it is significantly more ambitious in times of transformation. We are making substantial investments in electric mobility, digitalisation and the qualification of our employees. We also have high material costs for batteries. At the same time, we will still produce petrol and hybrid vehicles, as electric mobility is developing at different paces in the various regions of the world. Taken together, these are enormous costs. That’s why a 15 percent return is as valuable today as 20 percent used to be.

当新冠疫情结束后，你们是否计划再次实现 15% 的利润率？

15% 的销售回报率一直是我们坚持的未来战略目标，即使在目前的转型时期，这个目标显然是更雄心勃勃的。我们正在电气化、数字化和员工资质方面进行大量投资，且电池材料的成本也很高。与此同时，我们将继续生产燃油车和混动车型，因为世界各地电动车的发展速度很不平衡。以上都意味着大量的成本。这就是为什么现在15% 的销售回报率和以前的 20% 有一样的价值。

 

It seems like Porsche would have probably experienced strong growth last year without coronavirus? With a three percent drop in sales, you are clearly ahead of the competition.

That’s true. Last year, we delivered over 272,000 vehicles, only three percent less than in the previous year. In a difficult environment, this is a great success for our team. The coronavirus shutdown affected all companies in the same way. We had to stop production for six weeks, and dealerships were closed for even longer in some regions. As a result, we were ultimately unable to achieve more than ten percent of our planned annual sales.

如果没有新冠病毒，保时捷去年应该会取得强劲增长对吗？事实上你们的销售额只下降了 3% ，显然领先于竞争对手。

的确如此。去年我们交付了超过 272,000台汽车，只比前年少 3%。在如此艰难的环境中，这对我们的团队来说是一个巨大的成功。疫情引起的停摆对所有公司都一样有影响。我们不得不停产 6 周，有些地区的经销商歇业时间甚至更长，这也导致我们最终没能按计划实现年销售额10% 以上的增长。

 

To be able to afford the investments in new electric cars and digitalisation, Porsche has to cut costs. What specifically is being planned?

Our approaches go well beyond cost savings. Three years ago, we launched a comprehensive profitability programme: leveraging efficiencies and tapping additional sources of income. The positive effects have already helped us during the coronavirus crisis. To give concrete figures: by 2025, we will support our earnings by a total of ten billion euros. From then on, it should be three billion euros annually. We are making effective progress and have already developed more than 2,500 individual measures. The profitability programme is part of our everyday business today.

为了能够承担在电气化和数字化方面的投资，保时捷不得不削减成本。具体有哪些计划呢?

我们的方法不仅仅是节约成本。三年前，我们启动了一项全面的盈利计划：提高效率并挖掘新的收入来源。在新冠危机期间，这项计划的积极影响已经帮助了我们。拿具体数字来说，到 2025 年，这项计划的总收入将达到 100 亿欧元。从那以后，每年的收入应该是 30 亿欧元。我们正取得有效进展，也已经制定了 2,500 多项单独措施。盈利计划如今是我们日常业务的一部分。

 

Can you give us specific examples?

One example is digitalisation in vehicle development. We used to build a lot of prototypes for testing – at a cost of millions. Now a large amount of this development work is done digitally – just as well or better and at significantly lower cost. We are also trying to use more standard components across all product lines. In those areas where it has no significance for the identity of the products.

可以举一些具体的例子吗?

汽车开发中的数字化就是一个例子。我们曾花费数百万欧元建造了许多测试原型。现在，大量的开发工作都是通过数字化手段完成的——和以前一样好，甚至更好，而且成本低得多。在不要求明显产品特性的领域，我们尝试在所有产品线中使用更多的标准化组件。

 

Will the almost infinite number of equipment options continue to exist?

Our focus is on additional equipment in the vehicle. We remove extras that are very rarely requested by our customers. I would compare this with the menu of a good restaurant: 100 dishes on the menu confuse the guest. Exclusive restaurants have only ten dishes on the menu that are prepared to a high standard. And we are the latter – but in the car industry. Nevertheless, every customer can get an individual vehicle, which we make possible through Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur.

那么几乎无限多的选装配件还会继续存在吗?

我们将重点聚焦在车辆中的附加设备上，移除客户很少提出要求的多余部分。我以一家优质餐厅的菜单来做个类比：菜单上有100道菜会让客人感到迷惑；而高档餐厅的菜单上只会有十道高标准精心烹制的菜肴。我们就是汽车行业的后者。当然了，通过保时捷Exclusive Manufaktur，每个客户都可以拥有一台独一无二的专属座驾。

 

Will Porsche take a breather in 2021?

You don’t have to worry about that. Last year we had extensive major launches with the new 911 derivatives and the Taycan. An enormous feat for our team. Our customers now have a great range of products to choose from. There will be some positive surprises this year and we will use the time to further optimise our processes. Then, in the following years, we will take the next leap with even more vigour.

保时捷会在2021年歇息一下吗?

完全不用担心。去年，我们大规模推出了911系列衍生车型和Taycan。这对我们来说是一个巨大的成就。我们的客户有丰富的产品可以选择。今年会有一些惊喜，我们将利用这段时间进一步优化我们的流程。在接下来的几年里，我们将更有活力地跨越式前进。

 

Does it bother you that you now have to transfer Bentley to Audi?

No. For me, Bentley is a success story. In the past three years, we turned the company around completely. The Bentley team is doing a great job and has increased earnings by €300 million from 2018 to 2019 – with our support. The turnaround has been successful, Bentley is making money again. Even the coronavirus year 2020 closed with the numbers in the black. The product strategy is set for the future. The company will drive robustly into the future, prepared for a sustainable double-digit return.

大众集团决定将宾利划归给奥迪，你会觉得困扰吗?

不。对我来说，宾利是一个成功的故事。在过去的三年里，我们彻底扭转了公司的局面。在保时捷的支持下，宾利团队在2018年至2019年的业绩增长了3亿欧元。转型成功了，宾利又开始盈利了——即使是新冠疫情下的2020年，也依然有盈余。产品策略是面向未来设定的。公司今后将稳健地发展，为可持续的两位数销售回报率做好准备。

 

But the separation is still sad, isn’t it?

Porsche’s job has been done. Bentley is better off with Audi in the premium luxury segment than with Porsche in the sporty segment. That’s why we're happy to hand the company over to Ingolstadt in a reorganised form.

但分离重组还是令人伤心，不是吗?

保时捷的工作已经完成。宾利在高档豪华细分市场上与奥迪合作要比在跑车市场上与保时捷合作更好。这就是为什么我们很高兴将公司重组后移交给位于英戈尔施塔特（Ingolstadt）的奥迪。

 

Porsche is also involved in synthetic fuels and thus has a special role to play in the VW Group. Why?

Looking ahead, there is no alternative to electric mobility in order to achieve the CO2 targets quickly and sustainably. Nevertheless, we have over a billion vehicles with a combustion engine on the road in the world today. At Porsche, we think of sustainability holistically. We want to be a pioneer in demonstrating that synthetic fuels can be an environmentally sound approach for vehicles that are already on the road. Methanol from production that is CO2-free, converted into petrol, produced in places around the world where sustainable energy is abundant. Today’s engines and infrastructure can be used for this.

保时捷也涉足合成燃料领域，因此在大众集团中扮演着特殊的角色。为什么呢?

展望未来，要想快速且可持续地实现二氧化碳排放目标，除了电气化之外，并无其他选择。尽管如此，现在全球仍有超过10亿辆内燃机汽车在行驶。保时捷从整体上考虑可持续发展，我们想成为一个先锋，证明合成燃料可以成为一种适用于现有车辆的环保方法。在世界各地可持续能源丰富的地方生产无碳排放的甲醇，再将其转化为汽油。当下的发动机和基础设施都可以为此而使用。

 

Is it then feasible to achieve appropriate prices for these synthetic fuels?

At the moment, the cost is still around ten dollars per litre. With the right quantities, it could become less than two dollars in the next ten years. From Porsche’s point of view in particular, this opens up a future perspective for our icon, the 911 – either with a combustion engine or as a very sporty hybrid. This means that we could continue to drive the car for many years into the future, which will certainly make our customers and fans happy.

那么，未来这种合成燃料是否可以实现一个合适的价格呢?

目前，合成燃料的成本仍在每升10美元左右。规模化量产后，在未来十年内，可能会降至每升不到两美元。特别是从保时捷的角度来看，这为我们的跑车标杆911车型开辟了未来前景——无论是采用内燃机还是混合动力，都意味着我们可以在未来的许多年里继续驾驶这款车，这肯定会让我们的客户和车迷无比高兴。