Biden looks set to boost sales of electric cars with plans to cut emissions from vehicles

WASHINGTON, April 12 (Reuters) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed on Wednesday big emissions cuts for new cars and trucks through 2032, a move it says could mean two out of three new cars automakers sell will be electric within a decade.

The proposal, if passed, represents the most aggressive U.S. vehicle emissions plan to date, calling for 1[ads1]3% annual average pollution cuts and a 56% reduction in projected average fleet emissions above the 2026 requirements. The EPA is also proposing new, more stringent emission standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks through 2032.

The EPA estimates that the rules for the 2027-2032 model year will cut more than 9 billion tons of CO2 emissions through 2055 – equivalent to more than twice the amount of US CO2 emissions last year.

Automakers and environmentalists say the administration is moving quickly to finalize new rules by early 2024 to make it much more difficult for a future Congress or president to reverse them. Then President Donald Trump rolled back tough emissions limits through 2025 set under Barack Obama, but the Biden administration reversed the rollback.

The agency estimates net benefits through 2055 from the proposal range from $850 billion to $1.6 trillion. By 2032, the proposal would cost about $1,200 per vehicle per manufacturer, but save an owner more than $9,000 on average in fuel, maintenance and repair costs over an eight-year period.

John Bozzella, chief executive of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation which represents General Motors ( GM.N ), Volkswagen ( VOWG_p.DE ), Toyota ( 7203.T ) and others, said “factors beyond the vehicle, such as charging infrastructure, supply chains, grid resilience, the availability of low-carbon fuels and critical minerals will determine whether EPA standards at these levels are achievable.”

The proposal is more ambitious than President Joe Biden’s 2021 goal, backed by automakers, seeking 50% of new vehicles by 2030 to be electric vehicles (EVs) or plug-in hybrids.

The Biden administration is not proposing to ban gasoline-powered vehicles, but wants comments on whether to extend emissions rules to 2035 and on other options. Some environmental groups want the EPA to impose tougher rules, especially on heavy trucks.

The United Auto Workers union, which has previously warned of job losses from the shift to electric cars, said it would consider the EPA’s proposal.

“There is no good reason why electric vehicle manufacturing cannot be the gateway to the middle class that auto jobs have been for generations of union workers. But the early signs of this industry are worrisome,” the UAW said. “Forcing workers to choose between good jobs and green jobs is a false choice.”

EPA Administrator Michael Regan refused to approve setting a date to end sales of new gasoline-powered vehicles. He emphasized that the proposal is a “performance-based standard” and not an EV mandate.

“We’re not driving any particular technology out of the business — so to speak,” he said.

Under the EPA proposal, automakers are expected to produce 60% electric vehicles by 2030 and 67% by 2032 to meet the requirements—compared to just 5.8% of U.S. vehicles sold in 2022 being electric. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration plans to propose parallel economy standards in the coming weeks.

California in August moved to require all new vehicles sold in the state by 2035 to be electric or plug-in electric hybrids, but must still apply for an EPA waiver to proceed. Regan would not say how the EPA would respond to a California request. “We’ll be on the lookout for it if it ever comes,” he said.

Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito called the proposal “misleading” and said “The Biden administration made it clear that it wants to decide for Americans what kinds of cars and trucks we are allowed to buy, lease and drive.”

Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Transport Campaign, said the EPA proposal should have been tougher.

“Automakers are talking out of both sides of the tailpipe, promising electric vehicles while delivering mostly the same old gas guzzlers and lobbying for weak, loophole-filled regulations,” Becker said.

Under the proposal, the EPA estimates that 50% of new commercial vehicles such as buses and garbage trucks could be electric vehicles by 2032, along with 35% of new short-haul tractors and 25% of new long-haul tractors. Rules for medium-duty vehicles are estimated to reduce emissions by 44% during 2026.

Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell, Kirsten Donovan and Nick Zieminski

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