GM to sell only zero-emissions vehicles by 2035

The days of the internal combustion engine are numbered.

General Motors said Thursday it would phase out petroleum-powered cars and trucks and sell only vehicles that have zero tailpipe emissions by 2035, a seismic shift by one of the world’s largest automakers that makes billions of dollars today from gas-guzzling pickup trucks and SUVs.

The announcement could put pressure on automakers around the world to make similar commitments. It could also embolden President Joe Biden and other elected officials to push for even more aggressive policies to fight climate change. Leaders could point to GM’s decision as evidence that even big businesses have decided it is time for the world to begin to transition away from fossil fuels that have powered the global economy for more than a century.

Several other automakers, most of them European, have pledged more modest steps in the direction that GM says it is headed. Daimler, which makes Mercedes-Benz cars, has said it would have an electric or hybrid version of each of its models by 2022, and Volkswagen has promised an electric version of its models by 2030.

Electric cars represent the fastest-growing segment of the auto industry, but they still make up a small proportion of new car sales: about 3% of the global total, according to the International Energy Agency. Sales of such cars jumped last year in Europe and China, but they remain niche products in the United States.

GM said that its decision to switch to electric cars was part of a broader plan to become carbon-neutral by 2040. Its announcement came a day after Biden signed an executive order to step up the fight against climate change, including a directive for the federal government to electrify its large vehicle fleet.

“General Motors is joining governments and companies around the globe working to establish a safer, greener and better world,” Mary T. Barra, GM’s chairwoman and CEO, said in a statement.

GM said it would increase the use of renewable energy and would eliminate or offset emissions from its factories, buildings, vehicles and other sources. The company plans to spend $27 billion over the next five years to introduce 30 electric vehicles, including an electric Hummer pickup that it expects to start delivering to customers this year.