Casablanca – The European Union’s 27 member states approved the “Fit For 55” packet on Wednesday which aims to eliminate CO2 emissions from new automobiles by 2035, effectively ending sales of gasoline and diesel vehicles.
Proposed in July 2021, the European Commission plans to reduce CO2 emissions from new automobiles to zero by 2035, thereby mandating all-electric engines.
This proposal seeks to help the continent meet its climate goals, particularly that of carbon neutrality by 2050.
The EU-27 countries have decided — at the request of a few nations, notably Germany and Italy — to explore the approval of alternative technologies, such as synthetic fuels or plug-in hybrids, if they prove to help eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles.
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At the EU environment ministers’ meeting held yesterday in Luxembourg, they also accepted a five-year extension of the exemption from CO2 obligations provided to “niche” manufacturers, or those producing less than 10,000 cars per year, until the end of 2035.
This measure — dubbed the “Ferrari Amendment” — will favor premium manufacturers in particular.
These measures must now be negotiated with MEPs, who decided on their stance on the EU executive’s plan earlier this month.
“This is a big challenge for our automotive industry,” acknowledged the French Minister of Ecological Transition, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, who chaired Tuesday’s meeting.
However, she believed it was a “necessity” in the face of competition from China and the United States, both of which have invested significantly in electric cars.
These “upstream” measures would “allow a planned and assisted transition,” the minister stressed.
