World leaders are currently meeting at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland. They are there to review the progress that has been made since the 2015 Paris Climate Accords. They are also trying to negotiate new and more ambitious goals for the future.
- At the United Nations Climate Change Conference, six automakers and 30 countries signed a pledge to end sales of gas and diesel-powered cars worldwide by 2040.
- Ford, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Jaguar Land Rover, and Chinese automaker BYD all signed, as did two dozen fleet operators including Uber.
- The agreement also includes phasing out sales of those vehicles by 2035 in “leading markets.”
However, the United States, China, and Japan did not join the pledge. Also, some of the world’s biggest car manufacturers, including Toyota, Volkswagen, and the Nissan-Renault alliance did not join the pledge. Among the 30 counties that joined the agreement were European nations, including Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, where EV sales have already begun to take off. India, the world’s fourth-largest car market, was a crucial addition. The nation was among several, such as Turkey and Rwanda, that hadn’t already committed to a date to end gas and diesel car sales. California and Washington state (in United State) also gave their signatures. Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California signed an executive order saying that only new zero-emissions vehicles would be sold in the state by 2035. Regulators have not yet issued rules to make that happen.
Zero-emissions vehicles could include either plug-in electric vehicles or hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. Electric cars can still indirectly produce emissions if, for instance, they are recharged with power from plants that burn coal or natural gas. Two dozen vehicle fleet operators, including Uber and LeasePlan, also joined the coalition, vowing to operate only zero-emissions vehicles. Toyota, the world’s best-selling automaker in 2020, was also notably missing from the list of signatories, though it announced plans this year to sell 15 electric vehicle models around the world by 2025.
Some of the major automakers that did not sign the agreement are nonetheless investing heavily in electric vehicle technology.
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All Images are from Ford website and by myenergi.
