Bloomberg »

The incoming coalition of pro-business Free Democrats, center-left Social Democrats and environmental Greens plans to have at least 15 million fully electric vehicles on Germany’s roads by the end of the decade. Reaching such a goal, also vital to meeting Germany’s international commitments on slashing greenhouse gases, would require ending sales of combustion-engine cars in just a few years.

“It can only be achieved if new cars with internal combustion engines are no longer registered before 2030,” said Volker Quaschning, professor of renewable energy systems at the University of Applied Sciences in Berlin. “It makes sense to stop the registration of gasoline and diesel cars by around 2028.”

Germany’s 15 million EV target rests on maintaining 33% annual growth rate

So far, only 570,000 pure EVs drive on Germany’s roads, accounting for just over 1% of the nation’s fleet. Following a generous boost to incentives that can total 9,000 euros ($10,092) in vehicle-price reductions, registrations have more than doubled in the year through October.

More »