Come 2030, gasoline and diesel-powered cars will be a thing of the past in Israel. The country’s government announced citizens will no longer be able to purchase new cars powered by an internal-combustion engine.
Reuters reported the government’s plan will also include a shift for trucks to run on natural gas. The country recently discovered large deposits of natural gas, which burns cleaner than other fossil fuels. Busses will also run on natural gas until electric powertrains are fully developed for the larger vehicles.
Ahead of the ban on fossil fuel-powered cars, the government has begun making the necessary preparations for electric car infrastructure. More than 2,000 new charging stations are scheduled to come online in the years to come and Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said the government will reduce taxes on electric cars to nearly zero percent. The reduced taxes will help make electric cars more affordable for the average consumer.
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The government believes the “tipping point” will occur around 2025 when 177,000 electric cars are on Israeli roads. Today, only a few dozen electric cars are registered in the country. By 2030, the government believes the number will jump to 1.5 million electric cars.
Israel is the latest country to phase out the internal-combustion engine. Norway plans to ban the sale of new vehicles powered by gasoline and diesel by 2025, and the Netherlands plans an identical ban for 2030. France and the United Kingdom have agreed to take vehicles with internal combustion engines off the market by 2040, while the world’s largest auto market, China, also announced intentions to ban such vehicles. The country hasn’t given an exact date for when it plans to enact the measure, but it’s already begun rolling out electric-car quotas for automakers doing business in the country.
This article originally appeared on HybridCars.com
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