Automotive. End of thermal engines in 2035: not so simple…

25% less CO2 emissions per year. This is what is expected of this historic proposal made by MEPs on October 25th. An extensive project, especially as a study carried out in the Netherlands emphasizes the importance of the car in travel.

In fact, by 2035, it will be a question of rethinking the place of the car in society: parking, charging sockets, available energy, etc. And the place of cars with thermal engines that will continue to move, until the extinction of the species.

Fast chargers need to be installed quickly and in large numbers to facilitate movement. Problems: access to sockets and their supply of electrical energy as well as the cost of recharging. photo Ionity

Electricity = batteries, rare earths and lithium

For the automotive industry to supply cars, it would need to supply 15 times more lithium than it does today. Europe needs to take advantage of its natural resources to become less dependent on China.

In Europe, there was only one mine in Portugal, before Imerys took advantage of the vein it found in France. There must be a need for more mining and refining areas to achieve the goals, as much as it is necessary to avoid certain substances such as cobalt and to favor technologies such as lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP).

In the short term, batteries will have to evolve to avoid using cobalt. Research has focused on dry batteries, the use of lithium-iron-phosphate batteries, but more lithium will always be needed. A challenge because lithium must be found very quickly in Europe and be able to refine it. Audi photo

From the battery to the price, everything is heavy

Weight is the enemy. But automakers are making what the consumer expects: SUVs. And it weighs. Even electricity is very heavy due to the weight of the batteries. Result: vehicles that sometimes exceed 2 tons with a consumption of up to 28 kWh/100 km.

Again the question of price. A price that Carlos Tavarès (CEO of Stellantis) believes will not decrease in the near future due to the increase in research and development of more than 50% compared to a thermal car

The billing issue

There are not enough charging stations in public space. And the placement of terminals in collective housing, especially in the city, remains to be deployed. Even new constructions should profit from a pre-wiring.

This difficulty in recharging is part of the concerns of the European Manufacturers Association (ACEA) where the decided timetable and the feasibility of the whole thing pose a problem.

Research into synthetic fuels, especially blue diesel, could make it possible to sustain the production of thermal vehicles, if Europe wanted it. Response from 2023 due to review clauses in decisions on October 25, 2022. photo DR

What about “fossil” fuels? »

The final texts about the end of the sale of thermal cars must still go through the commissions. Europe has given itself the possibility of back-pedaling in the event of a problem: using synthetic fuels that avoid up to 90% of emissions and maintaining rechargeable hybrids, although the largest has already been recorded.

Fossil fuels can still be used because the current fleet will not be wiped out overnight.

Diesel and petrol will still remain but ZFEs will limit the use of thermal cars. Note that an amendment has been adopted by Europe regarding very high-end cars whose production is less than 1,000 copies: they can continue to be sold.

Having a charging socket at home will be part of the mandatory equipment; as with public terminals, there will need to be enough relatively cheap energy for electric vehicle development to thrive. As for the price of the electric car, it is unlikely to fall in the short term. picture DR

What about the financial support for this giga-reform?

So far, no aid has been mentioned in Europe to allow the purchase of electric vehicles. The only assistance is national and/or local. European manufacturers, as Carlos Tavarès said for Stellantis, believe that large-scale deployment will go through aid, including for manufacturers.

From next year, European proposals are expected to promote the decarbonisation of company fleets. In this area, the structures will require a lot of energy to recharge the vehicles.

The road is still long but the course is set. It remains to avoid the slowdown and traffic, hoping for favorable weather.