EU Commission: the new Automotive Package leaves room for light ICE vehicles after 2035
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 Made in the Union, or from e-fuels and biofuels. According to the Eu Commission, this will allow for plug-in hybrids (PHEV), range extenders, mild hybrids, and internal combustion engine vehicles to still play a role beyond 2035, in addition to full electric and hydrogen vehicles. More flexibility required also in the truck&bus sector.
The EU Commission today presented the Automotive Package to support the sector’s efforts in the transition to clean mobility. We’re talking about light vehicles, that is to say cars and light commercial vehicles, not trucks or buses. So, although maintaining “a strong market signal for zero-emission vehicles“, the package presents a review of the existing CO2 emission standards for cars and vans and a targeted amendment to those for heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs).
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 Made in the Union, or from e-fuels and biofuels. According to the Eu Commission, this will allow for plug-in hybrids (PHEV), range extenders, mild hybrids, and internal combustion engine vehicles to still play a role beyond 2035, in addition to full electric and hydrogen vehicles.
The new Automotive Package issued by the EU Commission today
An additional flexibility is granted for the vans segment, where the electric vehicle uptake has been structurally more difficult, with a reduction of the 2030 CO2 vans target from 50% to 40%. The Commission is also proposing a targeted amendment to the CO2 emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles with a flexibility easing the compliance with the 2030 targets.
“Innovation. Clean mobility. Competitiveness. This year, these were top priorities in our intense dialogues with automotive sector, civil society organisations and stakeholders. And today, we are addressing them all together. As technology rapidly transforms mobility and geopolitics reshapes global competition, Europe remains at the forefront of the global clean transition”, stated Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
