Biden pushes for electric vehicles to make up half of US sales by 2030

ISLAMABAD: President Joe Biden will set a new national target on Thursday for the adoption of electric vehicles, calling for them to represent half of all new auto sales by 2030.

The target is expected to be supported by companies such as General Motors, Ford Motor and Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler. Executives of the Detroit automakers are scheduled to attend an event at the White House and pledge EV sales of between 40 percent and 50 percent by 2030, international media reported.

Though the president will sign an executive order, the sales target is not mandatory. Instead, the document encourages the US auto industry and government to promote legislation and the adoption of electrified vehicles. The target includes zero-emission vehicles powered by fuel cells and batteries as well as plug-in hybrid models with internal combustion engines.

The order “doesn’t function as a mandate, but it does create the conditions for us to meet that goal,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Thursday. “We have got to act, the transportation sector is the biggest part of our economy emitting greenhouse gases, and cars and trucks are one of the biggest parts of that.”