Politics Beats Physics

The EU's decision to allow only climate- neutral vehicles to be registered from 2035 onward is in principle correct, provided that a systemic evaluation is carried out of all the emissions produced during the manufacturing, operation and recycling of the vehicle, regardless of the type of powertrain. However, this requires sector coupling to be introduced and, as things currently stand, there are serious doubts about the ability of those responsible to look far into the future. All over Europe, the media and politicians are proclaiming the end of the combustion engine, despite the fact that e-fuels are still undergoing testing and would be certain to be given the green light on the basis of a systemic, sector- coupled assessment. …