STRASBOURG (dpa-AFX) - According to the EU Commission, cars with combustion engines should still be able to be newly registered in the EU after 2035. The Brussels authority is proposing a corresponding amendment to the so-called combustion engine ban. About three years ago, negotiators from the EU member states and the European Parliament agreed that new cars would no longer be allowed to emit climate-damaging CO2 from 2035.
This 100 percent reduction target is now being abandoned. In the future, there will be exceptions whereby only up to 90 percent of CO2 emissions will have to be reduced compared to the base year 2021. The prerequisite is that CO2 emissions are offset by the use of environmentally friendly steel and more climate-friendly fuels. According to the Commission, the exceptions will apply to all cars that manufacturers want to bring onto the market after 2035.
Now the European Parliament and the EU member states must consider the proposals. They will evaluate the reform and may make changes. Both institutions can therefore still weaken or tighten the proposal. In the end, a sufficient majority in both institutions is required. How long this will take is still unclear.
Biofuels and e-fuels
In the future, biofuels and e-fuels will be used to offset emissions. Biofuel is already being blended with gasoline and sold as E10. Higher blending ratios of biofuels produced from organic waste, for example, can reduce CO2 emissions from existing traffic. There will be no special role for cars that can only be fueled with climate-friendly e-fuels.
Company and service vehicles to become greener
The EU Commission will set targets for the proportion of climate-friendly vehicles in company and fleet car fleets, depending on the member state. According to the plans, companies with more than 250 employees and more than €50 million in turnover will be affected. The Commission emphasizes that a major advantage is that these vehicles will enter the used car market much faster and thus be made available to normal consumers.
Demand for affordable electric cars
Car manufacturers should be able to benefit from so-called super credits if they build small, affordable electric cars in the EU. "This will create incentives for the market launch of further small electric vehicle models," according to the Commission. The Brussels authority specified a maximum length of 4.2 meters. EU member states and local authorities can develop further incentives to encourage the purchase of such cars.
Merz welcomed the plans last week
Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has already commented positively on the EU Commission's announced change of course. Last week, at a press conference in Heidelberg, he emphasized that the fundamental climate targets were not being called into question, but that a different path to achieving them was necessary. Merz assured that the EU Commission could count on the support of the German government.
Different camps
The SPD-led Federal Ministry for the Environment says that everyone knows that the future is electric. "Anyone who believes that there is another way out is, in my opinion, mistaken," said State Secretary Jochen Flasbarth. That is why it is important to continue to make a clear commitment to electromobility.
Criticism of the proposal's content has come from the Greens in the EU Parliament. "Anyone who wants to keep driving combustion engines forever is driving competitiveness, planning security, and domestic industry into a wall," said Green Party MEP Michael Bloss. The decision has been welcomed by CDU MEP Peter Liese, among others. However, he emphasizes that the industry must stop passing the buck to Brussels for its own mistakes.
The approach taken by the leader of the EPP group, Manfred Weber (CSU), has also been met with criticism. He had already anticipated the outcome of the Commission's proposals in an interview at the end of the week. The chair of the liberal Renew group, Valérie Hayer, said it was unacceptable for Weber to declare victory in the press even though the decision had not yet been finalized. /mjm/DP/nas
