The European Commission has announced that from 2035 it will no longer be compulsory to sell only electric cars. What are the possible consequences?
It had been in the air for some time. And in the end, after weeks of delays, cross-pressures and delicate political negotiations, it happened. The EU has postponed the ban on combustion engines planned for 2035. And Italy, together with Germany, is among the main countries that supported the postponement.
The truth is that the transition towards sustainable mobility in Europe now risks hitting a significant setback. In practice, the European Commission, by modifying the original plans that provided for a total ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2035, has effectively yielded to pressure from part of the automotive industry — in particular the German one. But the Italian one too.
Under the proposed new rules, from 2035 90 per cent of new cars sold will have to be zero-emission, while the remaining 10 per cent may include vehicles with traditional combustion engines, plug-in hybrids, range extenders (electric cars with a small engine that recharges the battery), mild hybrids, as well as electric and hydrogen vehicles.
The decision comes in response to concerns from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (Acea), which argues that current demand for electric vehicles is too low and that without changes to the regulations, manufacturers risk fines worth billions of euros.
"Flexibility for manufacturers is urgent," Sigrid de Vries, director general of Acea, had stated. "2035 is just around the corner and market demand for electric cars is insufficient to avoid the risk of multi-billion-euro penalties. Time will be needed to build charging infrastructure and introduce adequate tax incentives."
The European Commission envisages that manufacturers will use low-carbon steel produced in the EU to partially offset the environmental impact. An increase in the use of biofuels and e-fuels, synthetic fuels obtained from CO2 capture (a process not always economically or energetically sustainable), is also expected, in order to balance the extra emissions generated by the combustion vehicles that will remain in circulation.
Some who called on Europe to revise its 2030 and 2035 targets saw in the move a "more pragmatic and less dogmatic" vision, as Massimiliano Di Silvestre, president and chief executive of Bmw Italia, explained just hours after the Brussels announcement: "An enormously important step, one that we at Bmw Group have been hoping for for years, and which is inspired by the principle of technological neutrality — representing the first serious and consistent step towards tackling the issue of emissions reduction in a concrete and effective way."
But not all manufacturers welcomed the move positively. As BBC reports, Volvo expressed concern, stressing that it had "built a complete range of electric vehicles in less than ten years" and was ready for the full transition. "Weakening long-term commitments for short-term gains risks undermining European competitiveness for years," the Swedish carmaker warned when approached by the British broadcaster. A position also confirmed by Michele Crisci, president and chief executive of Volvo Car Italia, at the end-of-year press meeting: "Volvo remains committed to the choice in favour of electric mobility, the decarbonisation of corporate fleets as a strategic tool of competitiveness for Europe, and the opportunity to support the second-hand zero-emission vehicle market from corporate sources in favour of private buyers." This commitment is borne out by the launch, planned for 2026, of three new Volvo electric models: EX90, ES90, EX60, while the commitment to plug-in hybrid models remains, "precious for 'ferrying' customers towards future electric mobility," Crisci commented, alluding to the launch of the new generation of extended-range electric hybrids, XC60 and XC70.
By contrast, Volkswagen (Germany was among the strongest advocates of a revision of the emissions regulation…) welcomed the proposal, calling it "economically sound overall" and underlining the importance of supporting compact electric vehicles and greater flexibility on CO₂ targets.
But let us get to the heart of the matter. At the centre of the dossier is the revision of the CO2 emissions regulation for cars, with the abandonment of the 100 per cent reduction target for 2035 in favour of a 90 per cent target — which effectively reopens the door to the combustion engine even beyond that date. A position that should also include climate-neutral fuels and hydrogen.
This choice of technological neutrality, if left ungoverned, risks undermining the ecological transition of the car and exposing Europe to international competition — read: China. Not only that. The push towards the production of zero-emission vehicles is already generating new jobs, investment and innovation, as we shall see further on; a path that, if interrupted or slowed down, risks making Europe less competitive relative to global markets.
And there's more. Regulatory stability, with clear, consistent and stable policies, can give companies the confidence they need to invest in charging infrastructure and attract strategic investment. In the event of any relaxation of targets, however, there is a risk of sending a damaging signal to investors, manufacturers and supply chain partners — many of whom have already invested heavily in the electric transition, counting precisely on policy consistency. So much for the broader picture. But let's see where we left off.
To understand that, let's first take a step back. In 2023, the European Union decided that by 2035 car manufacturers would have to reduce emissions by 100 per cent, effectively introducing a ban on internal combustion engines. With the decision of 16 October 2025, the emissions reduction target was lowered to 90 per cent, opening the door for the remaining 10 per cent to hybrid engines, internal combustion engines and other more impactful solutions — which will therefore need to be offset through the use of green steel, as well as the aforementioned alternative fuels.
To understand what we stand to lose — and what we don't — we asked ourselves: what would Italian industries gain from the electric vehicle sector? The answers had already been provided by a report by Motus-E and the Università Ca' Foscari Venezia on the employment implications of the automotive sector's transformation.
What would Italian cities gain from a greater presence of electric vehicles?
Let's be clear: the revision of the 2035 legislative package proposed by the Commission will still need to be discussed, negotiated and approved by the European Parliament and the EU Council, so the legislative process is still ongoing. One thing, however, is certain: electric vehicles remain not only the enabling technology for autonomous driving — the true future of mobility.
They are also a major opportunity to seize if we want to secure more jobs and new professional skills. Industries could save on production and on material recovery and recycling systems for batteries. Our cities — which rank among the worst in Europe for pollution — would benefit from less noise and cleaner air. Drivers could pay less for fuel and feed energy back into the urban grid through smart grids. So, in your view, is what Europe has decided a missed opportunity or not?