EU countries vote on cars with internal combustion engines

In all likelihood, the EU states want to vote on the planned ban on new vehicles that are not climate-neutral from 2035 on Tuesday. The EU Commission and the German government had previously agreed on an additional declaration that would enable cars with combustion engines to be operated only with e-fuels. In theory, it should still be possible to register cars with combustion engines following 2035.

E-fuels can be produced using renewable electricity from water and carbon dioxide extracted from the air. Unlike petrol or diesel, they do not release any additional climate-damaging gases. Critics complain, among other things, that they are needed more urgently in shipping and aviation.

It is completely open whether combustion engines will be approved in any relevant number following 2035. The actions of the German government caused many EU partners to shake their heads. Germany had actually already agreed to a compromise, but withdrew its approval at the last minute.

It is disputed whether the project can be implemented at all as currently planned. A separate category is to be created for cars that can only be operated with e-fuels. Technical solutions for this would have to come from the automotive industry. The way engines that use e-fuels work is basically no different from normal petrol or diesel engines.

Austria’s Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) recently welcomed the agreement and pointed out that it would not further block the path towards CO2-neutral mobility. But the fact that a loophole is needed to get the “approval of the brakemen and blockers who mourn an old fossil ideology is a pity and will weaken Europe’s auto industry”.