Canada to require all new cars to be zero-emission by 2035, causing fury among industry

Canada released final regulations on December 19, stipulating that all passenger cars, SUVs, crossovers, and light trucks sold by 2035 must be zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) as part of the government's climate change mitigation plan.

The regulations include interim targets, requiring ZEVs to constitute at least 20% of all car sales by 2026 and at least 60% by 2030, according to CTV News.

Transportation contributes around 22% of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions.

The regulations have faced criticism from the automobile industry, calling the regulations "too ambitious" and pointing to the high cost of electric vehicles and incomplete charging infrastructure, especially in rural areas of the second largest country in the world.

“Regulating Canadians to buy EVs they can’t afford, or charge, will be a made-in-Canada policy failure”, Tim Reuss, president of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, told reporter.

PHEVs with an all-electric range of 80 km or more will still be eligible for sale in 2035 and beyond, the government ruled in an effort to address complaints that EVs are impractical in remote and northern areas, where cold conditions can cut the efficiency of batteries.