Merz to ask EU to drop hard cut-off for combustion cars from 2035

BERLIN, Nov 28 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Friday he would send a letter to the EU Commission urging it to keep technological options open for the automotive industry beyond the bloc’s planned 2035 phase-out of new combustion-engine cars.

"This is above all about achieving good compatibility between competitiveness and the demands we place of climate protection," Merz told a news conference on the results of this week's meeting of coalition leaders.

"I will ask the Commission, even after 2035, to continue to allow battery-electric vehicles that also have a combustion engine," he said, adding that highly efficient combustion engines should also be allowed.