European Union drafts ambition for 30 million electric cars by 2030

The European Union is planning to set a target for 30 million electric cars on roads by 2030, as part of a broad-reaching strategy to reduce carbon emissions that will be published next week.

One quarter of carbon emissions in Europe are emitted by the transport sector, and the EU already has strict vehicle emission legislation in place which deals big fines to car makers who do not reach the stringent limit of 95gm/km CO2 average for new vehicles sold.

A report in November outlined further tightening of these measures by the EU would be included in the upcoming document, which would see a swathe of pollution limits placed upon new car sales which would effectively amount to a complete ban on petrol and diesel car sales in the EU by 2025 according to German news site Bild.

The latest news, which calls for “very ambitious measures” in order that the EU meets it target to be carbon neutral by 2050, comes via Reuters which reports it has seen a draft document of the new strategy.

“The EU’s goal of climate neutrality by 2050 cannot be reached without introducing very ambitious measures to reduce transport’s reliance on fossil fuels,” the document reportedly said.

It says that in order for the EU car fleet  to play its role in meeting the 2050 carbon neutral target, “at least” 30 million electric cars must be on European roads by 2030.

For context, there have been more than 10 million new cars registered in the EU in 2020, with electric vehicles PLUS plug-in hybrids gaining a 9% average market share across all EU countries, according to the International Council on Clean Transportation.

However, the draft EU document, which Reuters says the Commission has declined to comment on and which may change before it is published in mid-December, also notes that adequate charging infrastructure may prove a stumbling block for the proposed transition.

It estimates 3 million public charging points – 15 times more than the 200,00 currently operational – and 1,000 hydrogen refuelling stations will be needed by 2030 according to Reuters.

To achieve this, the draft document mentions a “roll-out plan with funding opportunities and requirements”.

It also suggests that emissions restrictions currently in place on cars and vans may be expanded to include buses, and that zero emissions aircraft and ships need to be ready for market by 2035, according to Reuters.