European Union lawmakers have approved a law that will effectively ban the sale of new cars with internal combustion engines in the region starting in 2035. After that, only vehicles that do not produce harmful emissions during operation will be sold in the bloc.
Source. The Wall Street Journal
Details. An agreement on this issue was reached between representatives of the EU member states back in October last year. Now the European Parliament has approved a law requiring new cars sold in the EU to have significantly lower carbon emissions by 2030 and zero emissions by 2035. This, according to industry groups, should lead to the end of sales of new cars that use traditional gasoline and diesel internal combustion engines and accelerate the transition to electric vehicles.
After 2035, only cars running on carbon-neutral fuel will be allowed to be sold in the region. That is, new cars with internal combustion engines can theoretically be sold, but they should not use traditional fuel, only emission-free options.
The U.S. government has not yet set a date for banning the sale of conventionally powered cars, but the state of California, which has traditionally led the way in the transition to cleaner cars, last year passed rules banning the sale of new gasoline and diesel cars after 2035. According to analysts, this move could potentially prompt other states, which usually follow California's lead, to introduce bans as well.
Background. As a reminder, Sweden's Volvo is preparing to convert its main car models into electric vehicles.