Sales of brand-new petrol and diesel cars are set to be banned in Europe in the coming years, according to nine member countries.
A report from industry outlet Automotive News says the European Commission – the branch of the European Union (EU) responsible for proposing and implementing legislation – is preparing to set a date which would end the sale of cars and vans with traditional internal-combustion engines.
A handful of municipalities around the world have already implemented bans on petrol and diesel car sales by 2030 or 2035 (or signalled their intention to do so), but a declaration from the EU would be one of the largest ever made, as the ban would be implemented across 28 countries.
Many car makers have already announced they will stop manufacturing petrol- and diesel-powered models, with Volvo, Jaguar, Ford of Europe, and Bentley to move to an all-electric line-up by 2030, while others such as Volkswagen Group and General Motors will offer a majority of zero-emissions vehicles within the next 15 years.
In September 2020, a report outlined a plan for the EU to halve new-car emissions by 2030, with the bloc previously stating it would be carbon neutral by 2050. In late 2020, European truck manufacturers pledged to stop using drop diesel-powered trucks by 2040.
“We have to accelerate the green transition of road transport and as legislators send clear signals to car manufacturers and consumers across the EU,” Danish climate minister Dan Jorgensen said on Wednesday.
Denmark and the Netherlands have been leading the push, with support from Austria, Belgium, Greece, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Malta.
While not a member-state of the EU, earlier this week neighbour state Norway reported nearly 90 per cent of its new-car sales were electric.
