According to Markus Duessmann, European carmakers must be more daring, abandoning their dependence on fossil fuels to focus everything on renewable energy
The statements made by Markus Duessmann, head of Audi, have all the credentials to make people discuss. According to the German executive, European carmakers are expected to abandon fossil fuels starting in 2040, through a more rapid expansion of renewable energy both in Bavaria, where Audi is based, and elsewhere. Discussions about a possible Russian gas embargo in light of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine have increased pressure on companies and governments to expand investment in renewable energy. Mercedes, for example, has pledged new investments in wind and solar to help power its plants. “As Europeans we must be courageous and take responsibility for completely giving up fossil fuels by 2040,” Markus Duessmann said on the sidelines of a conference. And again: “We must focus all our energies on battery electric vehicles for individual mobility”. Audi, which is part of the Volkswagen Group, will stop selling combustion engine cars from 2033. Volkswagen’s parent company will do so from 2035 in Europe and later in China and the United States. But not all car manufacturers seem to converge on this point.
not everyone agrees
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In fact, BMW recently warned of the risks involved in concentrating exclusively on the production of electric vehicles too soon in the face of still high demand for combustion vehicles. Germany’s coalition government has said it is aiming for a phase-out of coal by 2030, and aims to meet all of its electricity needs with renewable energy supplies by 2035.