According to the German newspaper Der Spiegel, several EU-elected politicians now regret the strict ban policy aimed at gasoline and diesel cars.
The European car industry is not just in crisis. In the eyes of many, it is completely bankrupt. And that is making EU politicians regret it.
This is reported by the German newspaper Der Spiegel .
Because now the elected officials are suddenly not so sure that everything new on four wheels will run on electricity when the bell rings on January 1, 2035.
Here, the ban on the internal combustion engine is about to come into effect.
The ban, which will de facto stop all sales of both diesel and gasoline cars, is drawing massive criticism, both from the public and car manufacturers.
Among other things, repeated German surveys have shown that a majority of the population is against the plan.
And now, according to the German newspaper, several EU parliamentarians can no longer bring themselves to vote for a ban.
Instead, the elected officials in Brussels are now talking about the ban being 'technology-neutral'. This way, hybrid cars and electric cars with a small petrol engine to extend the range can escape through the eye of the needle.
If this happens, it will be a complete reversal of the EU's previous stance on cars that run on anything other than electricity.
The rules for plug-in hybrids in particular have just been tightened , and they are only set to become even stricter in the coming years.
In a so-called 'strategy document', which the newspaper has obtained, the EU Commission writes that it wants to 'explore possible flexibilities' in relation to the ban.
This must ensure that the European automotive industry can continue to operate on competitive terms.
The European Commission also writes that the synthetic fuel, e-fuel, can play a role in efforts to lower emissions from industry.
Furthermore, the European Commission believes that a sales ban must be 'technology-neutral'. This means that the EU must not exclusively support the development of electric cars.
Despite the story in Der Spiegel, the EU has yet to publicly reverse the ban on the combustion engine, even though the largest group of EU parties said before the election that they want the ban scrapped.
However, not everyone is equally enthusiastic about the technological openness. For example, a consulting firm last year rubbished the idea of synthetic gasoline. Read more about it here .
