EU deal reached on phasing out internal combustion engine for cars by 2035

Tonight, negotiators from the European Parliament, Member States and European Commission agreed on CO2 emissions requirements for new cars and vans and for a phase-out of the sale of new combustion engines by 2035.

Bas Eickhout MEP, Greens/EFA Vice Chair for the Environment committee and negotiator on the file, comments:

"Road transport is one of the sectors that can drive down emissions quickly. Not just as technology is rapidly improving but because electric cars are quickly becoming the cheapest option. Discussions over reducing emissions in the automotive sector are always politically charged but thanks to the efforts of our negotiators, we managed to keep the EU on track to zero emissions in 2035.

“Europe will be the first continent to phase out the sale of new combustion engine cars by 2035. This kind of ambition shows that the EU can lead the way on climate action and will encourage other regions to accelerate their efforts towards reducing road emissions. 

“We have strengthened the system that allows car manufacturers a bonus for the percentage of low or zero emissions vehicles they put on the market. This will increase the percentage of electric cars manufacturers sell by 2030. We also managed to steer the negotiations away from including synthetic fuels as an alternative to zero emissions vehicles, as those fuels are expensive, inefficient and scarce.”

More:

The proposal for CO2 emissions requirements for cars and vans sets targets for carmakers to reduce average emissions from new cars sold by -55% for cars and -50% for vans by 2030, this is compared to only -37,5% and -31% respectively, under existing rules. The deal must now be adopted by environment ministers and the European Parliament. The legislation is likely to take effect in 2023.