Stop petrol and diesel 2035, the EU Environment Council meets

On Tuesday 28 June the Environment Council of the European Union. At Palazzo Lipsius, in Brussels, we will discuss the proposal to block the sale of newly registered cars and vans with internal combustion engines starting in 2035. This initiative, included by the Commission as part of the ‘Fit for 55’ legislative package to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels) and achieve climate neutrality, has recently experienced the approval of the European Parliament.

In the Environment Council the representatives of the national governments will have to discuss and consequently deliberate on the proposal. This is the intermediate step before starting the so-called trilogue, that is the formal negotiation with the EU Parliament and the Commission. At the end of the whole process, the final text will be drafted, with adoption by the individual states. Even if ‘intermediate’, the stage could already be the site of a political showdown, as not all countries seem aligned on carrying out the ban to 2035. Several countries that produce cars and combustion engines would like less stringent rules or a postponement to 2040 (there is also Italy). Others, obviously non-producers or with a high environmental vocation, even push to anticipate. The compromise of 2035 seems the best when weighing these two currents, but achieving it will require greater European unity.

For all the countries that ask for corrections there is still hope of intervening, even if the line drawn by the European Union is clear and leads to lower emissions from the world of private and public transport. More clarity will be needed because, as the car manufacturers rightly claim, there are industrial plans to be drawn up and recruitments and contracts to be respected: you need to know as soon as possible what the cars of the future will be like, so as not to have to chase the dates. On the other hand, the brands all claim to have the ability to build only electric cars even starting from 2022, if needed: however, the puzzle lacks certain investments by the various European states, in relation to columns, energy collection, consumption of homes and a whole series of parameters that hopefully will be evaluated with extreme attention.