Vulcan Insight | EU plans for new cars to be emission-free by 2035

For years, politicians across the EU have been discussing phasing out cars with internal combustion engines within the EU’s borders. On Wednesday, the EU environment ministers were in Luxembourg to discuss big parts of EU’s key climate legislation of the ‘Fit for 55’ package. After wrestling for more than 16 hours, the Council finally agreed: From 2035, new cars in the EU should be emission-free.

EU states have now spoken out in favor of reducing the so-called fleet limits for cars to zero by 2035. These limit values ​​are specifications for manufacturers as to how much CO2 the cars and vans they produce may emit during operation. According to the will of the EU states, only new, climate-neutral cars should be sold in the European Union from 2035 onwards, banning the sale of new fossil cars, which include petrol, diesel, and plug-in hybrid cars. As an overwhelming majority of car manufacturers are going for electric cars, this production stoppage is seen as necessary for the green transition and is a huge step towards taking care of the climate.

EU Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans called the Council’s decision a “big step towards delivering the EU Green Deal” and reiterated that this “shift away from fossil fuels is even more urgent after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” while the French Council Presidency seemed perhaps the most joyous that they finally reached a deal – just in time for the end of their term.

Yet, the German government had been a little hesitant on the path to zero-emission, arguing for a long time about a common line. Finance Minister Christian Lindner had warned of major job losses if the EU were to give green light to the plan. Nevertheless, it seemed that the issue was dealt with earlier this week when German officials mentioned that they would back the EU’s plan. Both Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke and Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck welcomed the agreement.

“We are sending a clear signal that we have to achieve the climate goals,” said Minister Lemke, while her party colleague, Minister Habeck added: “This is the largest climate protection package that has been forged in Europe for 15 years,” calling the proposal a “bold exclamation mark for climate protection in Europe.”

The next step is for the EU states and the European Parliament to negotiate together and agree on a common position. Since the Parliament had already voted in favor of the ban earlier this month, preferring a ‘hard’phase-out of new cars with combustion engines, changes to the climate package remain inevitable.

Compliments of Vulcan Consulting – a member of the EACCNY.