European Auto Industry Decries EU Ban On Petrol Cars

The German auto industry is protesting a decision by EU parliament to ban the sale of cars that run on petrol and diesel by 2035, describing it as detrimental to the market and consumers. 

On Wednesday, in Strasbourg, the European Parliament voted to support a ban on the sale of new combustion engine cars beginning in 2035 in line with the bloc’s goal of achieving climate neutrality in 2050. 

The EU Assembly vote comes as the bloc desperately attempts to cut its independence on oil and gas products from Russia. 

In a statement, the German auto industry said the EU Parliament’s decision was “against citizens, against the market, against innovation and against modern technologies”m Euractiv reported. 

According to Hildegard Müller, president of VDA, the German auto industry association, Europe does not have sufficient charging infrastructure to support such a ban, and the EU Parliament is acting prematurely. 

“It will increase costs for consumers and put consumer confidence at risk,” Müller said. 

The German auto association is not alone in its opposition. EU-wide, the sentiment is one of consumer risk. 

In a press release, the German association of car drivers, ADAC, said that Europe’s “ambitious climate protection goals in transports” could not be achieved solely through electric vehicles. 

There is a disconnect between the numbers in terms of the causes of CO2 emissions in Europe. Passenger cars are said to account for 12% of all transport-related CO2 emissions in the bloc, but overall, transport accounts for some 25% of emissions. 

ACEA, the EU auto association, likewise said that markets were too volatile to absorb a ban on new combustion vehicles by 2035. 

“Given the volatility and uncertainty we are experiencing globally day-by-day, any long-term regulation going beyond this decade is premature at this early stage,” Euractiv quoted ACEA president Oliver Zipse, who is also the CEO of BMW, as saying. 

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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