Electrification is not the ‘only solution for the future’ says Mazda boss

Electric power is not the ‘only solution’ for lowering vehicle emissions.

That’s according to Mazda’s European research and development manager, Christian Schultze, who explained that having a ‘multi-solution’ approach of offering internal-combustion, hybrids and EV powertrains is the right way to reduce CO2 emissions from vehicles.

As many car manufacturers focus on electrification to meet stricter emission regulations, Mazda has done things differently, looking at alternative solutions with e-Fuels, carbon-capture technology and perfecting the internal-combustion engine with mild-hybrid systems.

Speaking at the launch of the new Mazda CX-5, Schultze told the PA news agency: “Mazda are not the forerunner for electrification and that might puzzle some people. For us, it’s hard to understand from a logic and engineering point of view why the European Union has strictly voted for electrification as the only solution for the future. We are following what we call our ‘multi-solution’ approach as we are not 100 per cent happy with this decision from the EU.”

He added: “We want to avoid introducing more CO2 into the Earth’s atmosphere, and there are many ways to do that as the combustion engine is not the devil in the box. The problem is we’re using fossil fuels, which produce CO2, the internal-combustion engine itself is not the issue.”

The new Mazda CX-5 will go on sale in the summer, while the brand will continue to invest in alternative-fuelled technology and will expand its EV model line-up in the future.