Strong EV sales ease pressure to weaken EU car climate rules

Battery-electric cars took 20% of EU new-car sales through May 2026, up from 15.3% a year earlier, as Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told ministers in Luxembourg on Thursday that faster adoption had changed the politics. The Environment Council's agenda included discussion of amending the regulation on CO2 emission standards for cars and vans, putting the bloc's car targets back at the center of a fight between climate policy and industrial flexibility.

Hoekstra said the rise in sales had reduced demands from some governments and lawmakers for looser rules on future combustion-engine sales. He still backed the Commission's revised plan, which would require a 90% tailpipe-emissions reduction from 2035 rather than the 100% target that would have effectively ended new combustion-engine sales outright. The same package also set out a €1.8 billion Battery Booster to support Europe's battery industry.

In the first quarter, battery-electric cars held 19.4% of the market, compared with 15.2% a year earlier. On June 16, accelerating EV sales in Europe were linked to high oil prices, more affordable models, lower running costs and stronger consumer demand.

Seven countries, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden, urged Brussels on June 8 to resist any further weakening of car CO2 standards, arguing that dilution would undercut climate goals, competitiveness and energy security. Transport & Environment put battery-electric sales at record levels across Europe in 2026, with 23 of 27 EU countries posting their highest-ever yearly BEV market share, including Denmark at 80%.