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STRASBOURG (dpa-AFX) - EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is leaving details of her proposal to soften the already agreed EU-wide ban on combustion engines open for the time being. In a press conference following her re-election in the European Parliament, she did not give a concrete answer to the question of whether private individuals will still be able to buy cars with combustion engines after 2035. The EU has actually decided that from 2035, only new cars that do not emit any climate-damaging CO2 during operation should be registered. At the insistence of the FDP, the German government had argued that there should be exemptions for so-called e-fuels.
Exemptions for e-fuels
E-fuels are synthetic fuels that can theoretically be used to run combustion engines in a climate-neutral way. However, they are relatively expensive and are urgently needed in aviation, for example. This is because it is more difficult to operate aircraft electrically on a large scale than cars.
In her political policy program for the next five years, von der Leyen announced an initiative for exemptions for e-fuels on Thursday morning. Specifically, it states that "a technology-neutral approach is required in which e-fuels will play a role by specifically amending the regulations as part of the planned review". Von der Leyen is referring here to the review of the decision to phase out combustion engines, which is already planned for 2026. This review will analyze whether the law should be amended again. However, von der Leyen made it clear that the goal of making cars climate-neutral from 2035 remains in place.
Theoretically, there are several ways to amend the law: If the entire package is touched again, it would have to go through the normal complex legislative process - i.e. get another majority in the European Parliament and among the EU states. However, it is also possible, for example, that exemptions for e-fuel cars could be included in the regulations by means of a so-called delegated act. This will be issued by the EU Commission, but the EU Parliament and the EU member states will have two months to raise objections.
Greens relaxed
Despite the unclear details, Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing was pleased with von der Leyen's announcement. The FDP politician said that he expected her to make the project a top priority and to make a personal commitment to creating approval regulations for e-fuels-only vehicles. This would make transport more climate-friendly more quickly.
The chairman of the center-right EPP alliance, Manfred Weber (CSU), and Austria's Federal Chancellor Karl Nehammer also expressed their delight. Nehammer called an open-technology solution, which also includes e-fuels, the right one. The key in the fight against climate change and for the mobility of the future lies in openness towards all technologies.
The ADAC stated that e-fuels are another way of achieving climate protection targets alongside the electric mobility that is likely to shape the future. It is important that realistically feasible conditions for use with e-fuels are formulated. E-fuels are particularly important for old combustion engines.
Green politicians were relaxed despite the softening plans. "E-fuels will always be a niche product in road transport," said Michael Bloss, the Greens' climate policy spokesperson in the European Parliament./mjm/DP/men
