DETROIT – The automakers are gearing up to produce new electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles — a byproduct of public policies and market demand.
The Inflation Reduction Act will cut CO2 emissions by 40% from a 2005 baseline, partly provided by the incentives given to EVs and hydrogen cars. Automakers are shifting gears and moving into the fast lane to give consumers what they want. Indeed, Cox Automotive forecasted sales of new EVs in the United States to surpass 1 million cars for the first time this year. Already, they are 7% of new car sales.
Take Toyota Corp.: Currently, 21% of its sales are electric or hybrid cars. The goal is 40% by 2025.
“Zero emissions from our vehicles are the ultimate goal, and we believe the path to getting there is with a portfolio approach – fuel cell vehicles, hybrid vehicles, plug-in hybrid vehicles, and battery electric vehicles,” Toyota says in its sustainability filing. “Offering a range of low-emission vehicles means we should be able to reduce as much CO2 as possible as soon as possible, which in North America means offering more plug-in hybrids and hybrids until the alternative fueling infrastructure for hydrogen fuel cell and all-electric vehicles expands.”
The European Union is phasing out the internal combustion engine by 2040, while the Biden Administration wants half of all U.S.-sold vehicles to run on electricity by 2030. An electrified transport sector goes a long to way to keeping temperature rises in check.
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