Europe backtracks on ban of new combustion engine cars, in setback to tackling climate change
The European Union had previously pledged to ban new combustion engine cars by 2035.
By Lianne Kolirin, CNN
London (CNN) — Plans to ban the sale of new combustion engine cars in the European Union by 2035 have been thrown into turmoil after pressure from car manufacturers.
On Tuesday, the European Commission proposed applying the ban, approved in 2023, to only 90% of vehicles, down from 100%. This means the remaining 10% of new cars made after 2035 could still be plug-in hybrid vehicles or those with internal combustion engines.
The move, unveiled by the EU’s executive arm alongside other measures to support the bloc’s car industry, represents a setback for tackling climate change, although the commission’s president, Ursula von der Leyen, said Europe remains “at the forefront of the global clean transition.”
“From 2035 onwards, carmakers will need to comply with a 90% tailpipe emissions reduction target, while the remaining 10% emissions will need to be compensated through the use of low-carbon steel … or from e-fuels and biofuels,” the European Commission said in a statement.
The proposal is likely to be approved by European lawmakers. Prior to the announcement, Reuters reported that Manfred Weber, president of the EPP, the largest party in the European Parliament, said the EU was planning to scrap the ban and indicated that he supported the new plan.
“The European Commission will be putting forward a clear proposal to abolish the ban on combustion engines. … It was a serious industrial policy mistake,” he said.
The announcement is a blow for the EU’s green credentials. The bloc is legally obligated to become carbon-neutral by 2050. Cars and vans are responsible for around 15% of the EU’s total greenhouse gas emissions, so a phase-out of polluting vehicles was a key part of EU climate policy.
The new measures are likely a concession to the European auto industry, which is under pressure from high energy costs and tariffs on exports to the United States.
Car manufacturers had high hopes for the shift toward electric vehicles when ambitious targets were originally set, but they have had to grapple with fierce competition from China and lower-than-expected consumer demand for EVs. Meanwhile, the charging infrastructure is not uniform throughout the continent.
Tim Dexter, a policy manager for environmental advocacy group T&E, said in a statement that the dilution of the ban could have “significant consequences for the climate.” It would send “a signal that long-term commitments can be rolled back just as they start to deliver real emissions cuts,” he added.
The news comes after Ford announced that it was pulling back on its EV plans, a move that will result in a $19.5 billion charge against its earnings.
Ford and US other automakers invested heavily in EV plans in anticipation of stringent environmental regulations put in place during the Biden administration. But the Trump administration has rolled back those emissions rules along with financial support for EVs, and is challenging states’ authority to set tougher rules.
Measuring how much planet-warming pollution a car emits is not a straightforward science as its whole life cycle, including how it was manufactured, needs to be taken into account.
Gas-powered cars, hybrids and EVs all emit roughly the same amount of pollution to manufacture, until you get to producing the battery.
Fully electric cars use large batteries made of materials that require heavy mining. That makes EVs 40% dirtier to produce on average than hybrid and gas-powered vehicles, one study shows.
But the picture changes over their whole life cycle. Gas-powered cars are the cleanest to make, but are the dirtiest over their lifetimes because their tailpipe pollution is so high. EVs might be the most carbon-intensive to manufacture, but they emit the least carbon pollution over their lifetimes: 40% less than gas-powered cars.
CNN’s Chris Isidore, Ivana Kottasová, Angela Dewan, Ella Nilsen and Lou Robinson contributed to this report.
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