Further to the Tesla-accelerated-ongoing and now inevitable death of ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles, German Chancellor Angela Merkel this week said that a ban on ICE cars by 2030 was being considered for Germany. This follows recent announcements that France will outlaw the sale of all petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040, India by 2030 and the Netherlands and Norway by 2025. See: Merkel looks to electrification as future of German auto industry. The EV race is on all around the world:
This is a significant step in an EV direction that could lead to massive changes in the German auto industry. In particular, she stated that “a ban of ICE cars could be an option.” Such policy would not come till October — after the election — but the change in rhetoric was surely not taken lightly.
Merkel also slammed the German auto industry for past actions to deceive regulators and consumers, and she put the pressure on them to clean up their image through genuine change.
“Large sections of the auto industry have gambled away unbelievable amounts of trust,” she stated in her speech in Dortmund. “This is trust that only the auto industry can restore. And when I say ‘the industry’ that is the company leaders.”
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