The Vatican is rolling out fully electric vehicles with the help of Volkswagen, supporting plans to make its fleet climate-neutral by 2030.

L-R: Marcus Osegowitsch, CEO of Volkswagen Group Italia; Pope Francis; Imelda Labbé, part of the management board at Volkswagen Passenger Cars; Christian Dahlheim, CEO of Volkswagen Financial Services AG06

The city state is gradually replacing existing vehicles with new EVs and has already taken delivery of two Volkswagen ID.3 Pro Performance models.

A further 40 Volkswagen EVs will arrive at the start of 2024, including the ID.3, 4 and 5, as part of the Vatican’s decarbonisation strategy.

These will be joined by other zero-emission vehicles from across the Volkswagen Group, which will be progressively handed over until the entire fleet has been completely replaced by 2030.

There are no details of whether the ‘popemobiles’ will be included in the replacements, but the new vehicles align with the state’s ‘Ecological Conversion 2030’ programme, which aims to reduce the CO2 footprint of its vehicle fleet.

Last month saw Pope Francis warn that the world is “collapsing” due to climate change and may be “nearing breaking point”.

In his ‘Laudate Deum’ apostolic exhortation, the Pope defended climate change activists, highlighted the emissions impact from richer nations and said: “What is being asked of us is nothing other than a certain responsibility for the legacy we will leave behind, once we pass from this world.”

Speaking at the vehicle handover, Imelda Labbé, part of the management board at Volkswagen Passenger Cars, said: “The electrification of fleets is becoming increasingly important across the globe. The fact that Vatican employees will now also be among our ID. drivers in the future is a great target and honour for our brand and underscores the attractiveness of our all-electric ID. models.”

Christian Dahlheim, CEO of Volkswagen Financial Services AG, added: “We are delighted to support the Vatican in this important project. This is something very special for us and shows that we are absolutely competitive with our mobility solutions.”