BMW Warns of "Imminent Risk" as Gasoline Car Ban Fuels Price War and Threatens European Automakers

BMW chairman Oliver Zipse has warned that the European Union's plan to ban the sale of new gasoline and diesel cars and vans from 2035 poses an "imminent risk" to European automakers, who are unlikely to win an upcoming electric vehicle price war with their Chinese competitors. Zipse believes that the base car market segment will either disappear or be dominated by Chinese manufacturers, while BMW is better positioned to compete in the market for cheaper and smaller electric vehicles. The EU's emissions regulation, which targets significant CO2 emission reductions, was made possible after Germany secured an exemption for e-fuels. Researchers have also noted a potential disruption in German-Chinese trade as China's electric vehicle boom accelerates.