Six Major Automakers Agree to End Gas Car Sales Globally by 2040

World leaders are currently meeting at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland to review the progress that has been made since the 2015 Paris Climate Accords and negotiate new, more ambitious goals for the future. On Wednesday, six major automakers—including Ford, General Motors, and Mercedes-Benz—and 30 national governments signed a pledge to stop sales of new gas and diesel vehicles by 2040 globally, and by 2035 in “leading markets.” However, the governments of three of the most significant car markets—the United States, China, and Japan—refrained from joining the pledge, as did major automakers such as Toyota, Volkswagen, and Nissan-Renault.

The pledge, which is not legally binding, is an agreement to “work toward reaching 100 percent zero-emission new car and van sales in leading markets by 2035 or earlier,” which could include sales of both traditional electric vehicles or hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. Along with the three aforementioned automakers, Volvo, Jaguar Land Rover, and Chinese automaker BYD also joined the pledge. The group of manufacturers who signed on made up around one-quarter of global sales in 2019, and two dozen fleet operators, including Uber, also promised to use only zero-emissions vehicles in their fleets by 2030.

Among the 30 counties that joined the agreement were European nations—including Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom—where EV sales have already begun to take off. India, the world’s fourth-largest car market, was a crucial addition. The nation was among several, such as Turkey and Rwanda, that hadn’t already committed to a date to end gas and diesel car sales. California and Washington state also gave their signatures.

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