24 states, 6 major automakers and some cities and investors want to participate on Wednesday World Climate Conference Set the end date for the internal combustion engine in Glasgow. This was announced by the British government as the host in a statement that night.
According to Reuters, manufacturers include Mercedes-Benz, Volvo (Sweden), BYD (China), Jaguar Land Rover, owned by India’s Tata Motors, and American automakers Ford and General Motors. Therefore, as part of the global effort to reduce carbon emissions, they will commit to stop the production of fossil fuel-powered vehicles globally by 2040, and only sell zero-emission vehicles and trucks in major markets by 2035 at the latest.
Volkswagen, BMW and other companies are not on board
According to people familiar with the matter ReutersVolkswagen and Toyota, the world’s two largest automakers, will not sign a pledge. Stellaantis, the world’s fourth-largest automaker, is also missing, as are Japan’s Honda and Nissan and South Korea’s Hyundai. German car manufacturer BMW will not join this commitment.
The automotive industry said that some manufacturers were skeptical of the paper because they promised costly technological changes, but lacked similar government commitments to ensure the necessary charging and grid infrastructure to support electric vehicles.
General Motors said, “I am proud to stand with other companies, governments and organizations, and are committed to the transition to 100% zero-emission vehicles.” Even Ford Confirmed to participate in the plan: “To be successful, everyone must work together.” Volvo had previously promised to fully switch to electric vehicles by 2030.
Germany may not be included
So far, the 24 states wishing to join the initiative lack important automotive markets such as China, the United States, and Germany. The participating governments hope to “strive to ensure that the sales of all new cars and light commercial vehicles worldwide will achieve zero emissions by 2040, and be sold in major markets by 2035 at the latest.”
The German Ministry of Environment stated that the federal government has not yet made a final decision. The negotiators of the climate meeting discussed it until late Tuesday night.
The outgoing Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) previously rejected the initiative. Scheuer told reporters: “Fossil internal combustion engines will expire in 2035. Combustion technology is still needed. We want to use synthetic fuels to make them climate neutral and retain the advantages of this technology.”
However, the statement in the plan did not consider the use of synthetic fuels for propulsion. This is why his ministry is firmly opposed to it. The Ministry of Transportation stated that this is also the route of the federal government.
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