The European Commission is set to announce that all new cars sold from 2035 should be zero-emission, and several car manufacturers have already announced plans to switch to all-electric.
Sources cited by agencies such as AFP or Bloomberg indicate that the Commission should offer its recommendations on Wednesday to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, which includes a complete cancellation of emissions from cars from 2035.
Commission documents consulted by Bloomberg indicate that the European executive wants emissions from new vehicles to drop to 65% in 2030 and to zero in 2035. These standards will be amended, the news agency adds, with a commitment for national governments to develop infrastructure that charges electric and hydrogen cars.
As if anticipating this decision, in recent months, many car manufacturers have taken the path of electricity radically.
The latest to do so, German Opel, a subsidiary of the Stellantis group, announced on Thursday that it will be 100% electric in Europe from 2028.
The group, which has joined PSA (Peugeot-Citroen-Opel) and FCA (Fiat-Chrysler) since January, wants to play a pioneering role in the ongoing electrification of the automotive market. He has already given up the development of internal combustion engines and intends to invest 30 billion euros in the electrification of its ranges by 2025 and in computer programs.
Opel wants to be 100% electric in Europe by 2028, while Fiat wants to be 100% electric between 2025 and 2030, its CEO Olivier François said.
Volkswagen is betting on electric vehicles and has been successful so far. Its compact ID3 model, introduced in late 2020, is competing for market leadership with Tesla.
The German group has yet to announce a date to end production of internal combustion engines, but expects 60% of battery cars to be sold in Europe by 2030.
In the transition to a tram, he will invest 46 billion euros over five years.
Its luxury brand Audi will be 100% battery-powered in 2033. Its other subsidiary, Porsche, will start producing high-performance battery cells.
Lamborghini, which also belongs to this German group, aims to electrify its entire sports car range by the end of 2024.
Supercar maker Bugatti, which will be handed over by VW to Croatian electric vehicle pioneer Rimac, is expected to release an electric model in the medium term.
For its part, Volvo, a subsidiary of the Chinese Geely group, plans to remove from its catalog by 2030 all combustion engine models, including hybrids, on the same date as Bentley or Ford for Europe.
“From 2025, half of our cars will be electric,” Volvo Cars President Hakan Samuelsson told AFP in March.
To reinvent its lineup, Jaguar Land Rover, a subsidiary of the Indian Tata Group, will invest £ 2.5 billion (€ 2.8 billion) a year, mainly in trams. All Jaguar sports cars will be electric from 2025.
Renault, which pioneered the tramway with Zoé, aims to introduce “the greenest ‘blend’ on the European market in 2025,” with more than 65% of vehicles being electrified. By 2025, it will launch 10 new electric vehicles, including a modern and “affordable” version of the iconic Renault 5 made in France.
BMW wants to sell 10 million all-electric models over the next 10 years, more than double its announced four million.
Another pioneer of electric vehicles, the i3, this brand then gave way to, namely Tesla.
Its Mini subsidiary will completely phase out combustion engines within 10 years.
North American General Motors intends to end production of pollutant cars by 2035, even if it hasn’t yet made an open commitment to an exclusive EV offering this year.
And Japan’s Toyota, a pioneer of hybrid cars that doesn’t believe in battery-powered cars, will have seven all-electric models by 2025.
Until then, the world’s # 1 car maker expects 10% of sales in Europe to come from electricity and hydrogen, along with 70% for hybrids, 10% for rechargeable hybrids and 10% for fossil fuel vehicles.
In the case of Daimler (Mercedes-Benz), the goal is to continue the “acceleration” in the field of electric vehicles, doubling sales of electrified vehicles, including hybrids, in 2021 compared to 2020. In 2025, 25% of cars sold should be electrified companies with a target of 50% by 2030.
Finally, Korea’s Hyundai plans to introduce 23 electric vehicle models by 2025 and sell over a million units. For its part, Kia will unveil seven electric models, which should account for 20% of its global sales.
