Green Forum • 14 May, 2024 at 8:00 AM
The European Union countries have given final approval to a law aimed at reducing carbon dioxide emissions from trucks, which will require that the majority of new heavy vehicles sold in the EU from 2040 onwards emit no emissions.
The law will mandate a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions from new heavy vehicles by 2040. The new rules maintain the existing 2025 target currently set at a 15% emissions reduction for heavy lorries weighing over 16t. In line with the EU's climate objectives for 2030 and beyond, the regulation further establishes the following new targets:
- a 45% emissions reduction from 2030 (increased from 30%)
a 65% emissions reduction from 2035
The new rules introduce a 100% zero-emission target for new urban buses by 2035, with an intermediate target of 90% for this category by 2030. Inter-urban buses will be exempt from this target, as they will be regarded as coaches for the purposes of measuring emissions reduction.
The regulation will now be signed and published in the Official Journal of the EU. It will enter into force 20 days after its publication.
The effectiveness and impact of the amended regulation will be reviewed by the Commission in 2027.
Among other things, the Commission will also have to evaluate the possibility of developing a common methodology for the assessment and reporting of the full lifecycle CO2 emissions of new heavy-duty vehicles.