The Committee on the Environment, Public Health, and Food Safety (“ENVI”) decided on Wednesday to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles in Europe to reach increased climate ambitions. In July 2021, as part of the ‘’Fit for 55’’ package, the European Commission (‘’Commission’’) decided to propose an amendment to the Regulation 2019/631 to strengthen the CO2 emission performance standards for new passenger cars and new light commercial vehicles in line with the Union’s increased climate ambition. Currently, carmakers need to ensure that their average fleet of new cars emits no more than 95 grams of C02 a kilometer.
Lawmakers have now urged to cut the CO2 emissions by 100% by 2035 due to the constant rise of emissions in this industry and the need for tougher goals for cutting pollution originating from transport.
Additionally, the European Parliament decided that carmakers should meet a goal of a 20% reduction in carbon emissions to accelerate the shift from petrol and diesel.
It is important to note that some big companies, such as Volkswagen, already announced that they will stop selling combustion engine cars in Europe by 2035, which is a great initiative that will support environmental goals. Moreover, the European Union is also proposing the requirement for countries to install public charging stations for electric vehicles along major roads.
The vote is not final, but it surely is a great step towards putting an end to new cars powered by petrol or diesel by 2035 and reaching green deal goals in the planned timeframe.
Authors: Marko Đorđević, Milica Novaković
