USA goes electric
By the end of the decade, 50% of new cars in the USA are to be electric. Biden has signed an executive order and wants to invest 174 billion US dollars. The carmakers are behind the plan to remain internationally competitive.
E-cars are the future according to US President Joe Biden (Democrats). According to a newly formulated target, half of all new cars sold should therefore be electric from 2030. This includes purely electric vehicles, but also hybrid and hydrogen vehicles.
To put the plan into practice, Biden wants to invest 174 billion US dollars in electromobility, among other things in the conversion of factories as well as research and development. 7.5 billion dollars are to flow into the expansion of charging stations and 2.5 billion dollars are to be invested in electric buses. Purchase bonuses for electric cars are to be available up to a level of about 10,000 dollars.
In order to make electric cars more attractive to consumers, emission standards are also to be tightened and the costs for consumers are to be adjusted to the emissions of their vehicle. Only then will it really be worthwhile for consumers to drive a clean vehicle. Emissions that are harmful to the climate are to be reduced by 60% by 2030 compared to 2020. Biden does not want to rely on comprehensive environmental zones and driving bans. Instead, politicians should create incentives.
While the Republicans do not support the push, the left-wing Democrats want even more from the president. The majority of carmakers are behind Biden. They see the coming years as crucial in order not to lose out in international competition. Especially in comparison with China, they have to act now in order to keep up. Ford, General Motors and Stellantis have confirmed in a statement that they want to push up the electric share of their new vehicles to 40-50% by 2030. Other manufacturers, such as BMW, Volkswagen and Ford, as well as the UAW auto union, also support the plans.
So Biden has the industry's backing. Nevertheless, it will probably be difficult to convince the Americans completely of the benefits of electromobility. At the moment, the rate of new electric cars is still only 2%. Most Americans rely on SUVs with combustion engines.
But with the enormous amount of investment, Biden will probably be able to make a big difference; Tesla is already leading the way and has had a lot of success both in terms of sales figures and the charging network.
The next few years will show whether the Americans will go along with their president's ambitious plan and whether the path of billions in investments and incentives will lead to the hoped-for success faster than the introduction of driving bans and environmental zones.