Iran Energy News Oil, Gas, Petrochemical and Energy Field Specialized Channel
Related Articles
One of Europe’s biggest economies and car markets, Italy, has renewed its push to seek a revision of the European Union’s plans to ban the sales of new combustion-engine cars from 2035, a draft document seen by Bloomberg showed on Thursday.
Italy and the Czech Republic have teamed up to call on EU officials to reconsider the timeline of a review of the regulation to 2025 instead of 2026. The two EU member states are also calling on the EU to recognize a “broader array” of solutions apart from battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and hydrogen-powered cars, according to the document seen by Bloomberg.
Italy says that the EU policies should continue to focus on the competitiveness of the European auto manufacturing industry, which has been struggling in recent years.
“The industry is now at a critical juncture, facing significant challenges related to production, employment, and global competition, which require urgent and coordinated action at the EU level,” says the draft document.
Last month, Germany’s car manufacturing giant BMW warned that an EU ban on the sale of gasoline and diesel cars from 2035 is “no longer realistic” amid slow EV sales as the European auto industry will see a “massive shrinking” with such a ban.
European carmakers are already struggling with their EV sales as subsidies in many countries are coming to an end and Chinese low-cost vehicle makers are gaining market share.
Last year, the EU member states approved an emissions regulation under which the bloc will end sales of new carbon dioxide-emitting cars and vans in 2035.
But BMW’s chief executive Oliver Zipse said last month that the ban “could also threaten the European automotive industry in its heart.”
The current regulations will “with today’s assumptions, lead to a massive shrinking of the industry as a whole,” Zipse added.
