Official: EU Approves 2035 ICE Ban With Exemptions for E-Fuel-Powered ICEs

This is it. The European Union (EU) has finally approved the 2035 internal combustion engine (ICE) sales ban, with special exemptions added for e-Fuel-powered ICE vehicles. After facing delays due to objections from Germany and its alliance, the EU has finally put the matters to bed by approving this rather controversial yet revolutionary bill.

With this, sales of the ICE cars were set to be totally banned from 2035 onwards, aiming to reduce the continent’s carbon emission by 100% for all new vehicles sold. Before reaching the 2035 end game, this new legislation will gradually phase out the sales of new ICE vehicles, with an initial target of reducing up to 55% of new ICE sales by the end of this decade alone.

However, there is a special exemption given to low-volume manufacturers with less than 1,000 units delivered annually. And interestingly, there will also be another special exemption given to vehicles powered by carbon neutral e-fuels.

The inclusion of this new exemption is powered by an opposing alliance movement spearheaded by Germany and Italy, with most of its members comprises of Central and Eastern European countries like Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary. The same alliance also caused the delay on the final voting of this bill, which was supposed to take place earlier this month.

Germany's Transport Minister Volker Wissing

Commenting on this momentous occasion, Germany’s transport minister Volker Wissing said this new agreement would “open up important options for the population towards climate-neutral and affordable mobility.”

The minister also shared his thoughts on Twitter by saying, “Vehicles with combustion engines can also be newly registered after 2035 if they only use CO2-neutral fuels.”

The integration of e-fuels into the EU’s 2035 ICE ban bill is most likely to be welcomed by boutique manufacturers like Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Porsche, with the latter already making a sizable investment worth around US$75 million (RM331.57 million) in developing the production of synthetic e-fuels. Furthermore, the Stuttgart-based marque has already established an e-fuel processing plant in Haru Oni, Chile.

European Federation for Transport and Environment Policy Officer Carlo Tritto

However, this revelation is not well-welcomed by all parties, especially amongst the environmentalists. In a special interview with Euronews,  European Federation for Transport and Environment policy officer Carlo Tritto said that e-fuel production is “very inefficient” and can require “up to five times more energy than electric vehicles.”

VW Group Boss Thomas Schafer

Aside from environmentalists, Volkswagen boss Thomas Schafer previously commented on the debate over e-fuels, saying that it is an “unnecessary noise”. With Volskwagen’s plan to fully phase out ICEs from their line-up by 2033 already in full motion, the boss posed a very poignant question to e-fuel supporters and lobbyists, “So why spend a fortune on old technology that doesn’t give you any benefit?”

To facilitate this gradual-yet-sudden shift towards zero carbon emission, the EU Parliament and Council has also reached another agreement to boost and expand the public EV charging network and hydrogen filling stations around the 27-bloc’s main transport corridors and hubs.