EU Wants to Ban the Sale of Gas- and Diesel-Powered Cars by 2035

• The European Union moved ahead with plans to phase out the sales of new gas- and diesel-powered trucks and vans by the year 2035.

• The proposed plan, which is widely expected to be adopted, would also see intermediate targets for the reduction of average emissions by new cars.

• The EU is set to face an energy crisis after this winter, amid already skyrocketing prices on natural gas in a number of western European countries.

The European Parliament and Council have reached a provisional agreement to phase out the sales of gas and diesel-engine cars and vans by the year 2035, taking another step forward in the direction of zero-emission vehicles. Before the target date, the EU will also seek to achieve an intermediate target of reducing the average emissions of new cars by 55% by the year 2030, with vans required to reduce their average emissions by 50% by the same year.

The provisional agreement, announced by the European Commission late last week, now awaits a formal adoption by the European Parliament and Council.

"The agreement sends a strong signal to industry and consumers: Europe is embracing the shift to zero-emission mobility," said Executive Vice President for the European Green Deal, Frans Timmermans.

The tentative deal follows the efforts of a number of large European cities to ban older gas- and diesel-engine cars from certain districts, as well as restrict the entry of trucks into parts of cities. A number of cities had also implemented congestion charging, following London's lead over a decade ago, to restrict all vehicles from city centers. These efforts have been happening on the scales of municipalities, rather than countries or regions, and have represented some of the more ambitious steps in this direction.

The provisional agreement, however, seeks to cement an EU-wide phaseout of the sale of gas and diesel-engine cars and vans (but not trucks), just as EV adoption rates in the EU gain momentum.

"European carmakers are already proving they are ready to step up to the plate, with increasing and increasingly affordable electric cars coming to the market," Timmermans added. "The speed at which this change has happened over the past few years is remarkable. It is no wonder that this file is the first one in the entire 'Fit for 55' package where member states and the European Parliament have come to a final deal."

The 2035 target still faces a number of hurdles, with energy prices in Europe seeing significant hikes this year amid a near-ban of all energy imports from Russia. European automakers, meanwhile, are scrambling to secure long-term contracts with the suppliers of raw materials for EV battery production, amid a tightening supply of other automotive components.

Access to the needed energy and raw materials to achieve the 2035 goal is by no means seen as a given.

"Make no mistake, the European automobile industry is up to the challenge of providing these zero-emission cars and vans," said Oliver Zipse, European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) president and CEO of BMW. "However, we are now keen to see the framework conditions which are essential to meet this target reflected in EU policies. These include an abundance of renewable energy, a seamless private and public charging infrastructure network, and access to raw materials."

Three US states have sought to adopt similarly ambitious targets for the phase-out of the sales of gas- and diesel-powered cars and trucks. California and New York have set a target year of 2035, while Washington state plans to go ZEV-only by 2030.

Is the 2035 target realistic for all US states to adopt when it comes to phasing out gas- and diesel-powered cars and light trucks, or will some states need more time? Let us know in the comments below.