U.S. President Joe Biden is signing on Thursday an executive order, setting a target to make 50 percent of all new vehicles sold in the United States in 2030 zero-emission vehicles, in a move supported by Detroit’s Big Three.
“The future of the auto industry is electric — and made in America. Today I’m signing an executive order with a goal to make 50% of new vehicles sold by 2030 zero-emission — and unveiling steps to reverse the previous administration’s short-sighted rollback of vehicle standards,” President Biden tweeted on Thursday.
The executive order will include battery electric, plug-in hybrid electric, or fuel cell electric vehicles, the White House said in a statement.
The zero-emission vehicle target is broadly aligned with the targets of the major U.S. automakers, but also a continued resistance from the Administration to calls from Democrats to set a date for phasing out new sales of gasoline cars.
Although President Biden has repeatedly said that the U.S. must lead in EV technology and sales and ordered a review on the Trump Administration’s fuel economy standards, the Biden Administration has neither set nor pledged to set a date for phasing out new gasoline car sales.
The U.S. automakers – General Motors, Stellantis, and Ford Motor – are all investing billions in EV production in anticipation of a shift in buyer behavior but challenges remain.
The Big Three issued a joint statement on the Administration’s goal, announcing their shared aspiration to achieve sales of 40-50 percent of annual U.S. volumes of electric vehicles (battery electric, fuel cell and plug-in hybrid vehicles) by 2030 in order to move the nation closer to a zero-emissions future consistent with Paris climate goals.
“We look forward to working with the Biden Administration, Congress and state and local governments to enact policies that will enable these ambitious objectives,” Ford, GM, and Stellantis said.
The UAW stressed more on the need to preserve jobs.
“While the UAW notes that the companies have made voluntary commitments on Electric Vehicles, the UAW focus is not on hard deadlines or percentages, but on preserving the wages and benefits that have been the heart and soul of the American middle class,” UAW President Ray Curry said.
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By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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