Bonjour Paris!
In line with the US rejoining the Paris Climate Change Accord, President Joe Biden will ask US agencies to revise fuel economy standards and emissions restrictions for passenger vehicles, according to Reuters. It said that Biden’s presidential transition team has indicated that the new president will reverse Trump-era energy legislation, including rolling back US Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, fulfilling a campaign promise to revise fuel economy standards established under the Trump administration.
The Trump administration previously set a 1.5% annual fuel efficiency increase through 2026, revising the 5% increase established under the Obama administration. The standards rollback was estimated to result in an increase in oil consumption of two billion additional barrels and 867 million metric tons of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere, according to the Trump administration.
Among President Biden’s priorities is spending for more than half a million new all-electric vehicle charging stations, as well as tax credits for new EV purchases and EV production. GM has previously stated that it is gearing up to release 30 new EVs by 2025, two-thirds of which will be sold in North America. The automaker has pledged billions of dollars in investments into new EV and autonomous vehicle (AV) technologies. GM has acknowledged Biden’s win in the US presidential election and said that it was looking forward to “working with the new administration and incoming Congress on policies that support our customers, dealers and employers, help strengthen our manufacturing presence in the United States and advance GM’s vision of an allelectric, zero-emissions future”.