Italy seeks early review of EU's 2035 combustion engine ban

Italian officials said the European Union's plan to ban sales of new internal combustion engines from 2035 should be reviewed earlier than planned. 

"The ban must be changed," Energy Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin said on the sidelines of the TEHA business forum in Cernobbio, on the shores of Italy's Lake Como, on Saturday.

Pichetto Fratin called the decision by the EU "absurd,' and dictated by an "ideological vision' along with a state-controlled approach to policy-making within the bloc.

The plan needs changing in order to reflect different market realities amid the European auto industry's slowdown, he added.

Italy's Industry Minister Adolfo Urso said an intermediate assessment on the progress to meet the new rules, currently due in 2026, should instead take place at the beginning of next year.

"In an uncertain landscape which is affecting German automotive industry, clarity is needed to not let the European industry collapse,' Urso said in Cernobbio.

"Europe needs a pragmatic vision, the ideological vision has failed. We need to acknowledge that,' he added.

EU law will require new cars sold after 2035 to have zero carbon emissions, making it impossible to sell new fossil fuel-powered vehicles in the 27-nation bloc.

The right-wing government of Giorgia Meloni believes the European Commission should allow member states to have more freedom in choosing the technology they prefer to meet agreed decarbonization targets and supports a more gradual shift away from combustion engine technology.

Italy's officials have said they are not against electric-vehicle development and production, but that it should be part of a more broader mix of automotive propulsion systems.

The government coalition party League, led by Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, is ready to propose legislation to commit Premier Giorgia Meloni's government to revoking the ban, according to a statement on Friday.

European automakers are having to invest heavily in electrification as the EV market cools and Chinese rivals target Europe with affordable electric cars.

Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume said change was needed because the European market is shrinking while competition is increasing.

Speaking in an interview in Sunday paper Bild am Sonntag, Blume said "the pie has become smaller, and we have more guests at the table."

"Fewer cars are being sold in Europe. At the same time, new competitors from Asia are forcefully pushing into the market," he was quoted as saying.

VW said on Sept. 2 it was considering taking the unprecedented step of closing factories in Germany and ending job guarantees at its German plants in a drive to deepen a 10 billion euro cost-cutting plan.

Stellantis sales in Italy are decreasing and the automaker, which owns the Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Maserati Italian brands. plans to cut jobs. VW is considering factory closures in Germany for the first time in its 87-year history.

Renault CEO Luca de Meo said in an interview on Sunday that European carmakers could incur as much as €15 billion in fines if they can't meet the EU's ambitious climate goals following a slowdown in EV sales.

Bloomberg and Reuters contributed to this report