Combustor off: EU Parliament finds compromise on CO2 targets

The democratic centre in the European Parliament has reached a compromise on how to relax the combustion off in the EU. This seems to pave the way for the European institutions to agree on a reform of the CO2 limits for new cars.

According to SPIEGEL information, the negotiators of the conservative EPP, the social democratic S&D and the liberal group Renew Europe have agreed on a corresponding solution in the night of Tuesday. According to this, CO2 emissions from new cars in the EU should »only« decline by 87.5 percent by 2035 compared to the 2021 baseline year. This would allow the sale of new combustion engines and hybrid cars even after 2035, without threatening manufacturers billions in fines.

At the same time, the car industry should be given a strong incentive to install climate-friendly steel. According to the plans, emissions should fall by 95 percent. However, if manufacturers install green steel, they may shed another 7.5 percentage points.

The compromise is not yet official. The three groups, which together form the so-called centre platform in the European Parliament, still have to deal with the result of the negotiations from the night.

The Transport Committee and the Industry Committee of the EU Parliament are to vote on their opinion on the reform this Thursday, the lead Environment Committee is to follow in early November. The plenary of the EU Parliament is now expected to adopt its position in December.

Last week, Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and French President Emmanuel Macron had already agreed on a common position on the combustion plant. Their compromise is considered to be groundbreaking for the vote in the Council of EU member states.

Once the Council and Parliament have each adopted their positions by a majority, the negotiators of the institutions can negotiate a final compromise early next year.