Volvo Cars urges EU to resist pressure to scrap fossil-fuel autos ban

By Marie Mannes

STOCKHOLM, Dec 12 (Reuters) - A Volvo Cars VOLCARb.ST executive said on Friday he hoped the European Commission would resist pressure to scrap an effective ban on combustion engine car sales, saying the Swedish automaker was "ready to go" with electric alternatives.

Germany, Italy and their manufacturers have been lobbying Brussels to at least water down plans for a ban by 2035, arguing they need support in the face of intense competition from China.

A leading German EU lawmaker said on Friday the European Commission will move to scrap the ban next week and suggested there would be an alternative proposal for a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions for automakers' fleet targets

Ditching the ban would be "a pity," Volvo Cars Chief Commercial Officer Erik Severinson told Reuters.

Volvo Cars and fellow Swedish automaker Polestar PSNY.O have been among the fiercest opponents of changing plans, alongside other electric car makers that say they feel let down after investing heavily in the transition.

Severinson said he understood there would be some sort of compromise on the proposals, but warned that shifting course now would undermine confidence in future regulation.

"It kind of deteriorates the trust for the whole system... We have invested a lot and we're ready to go," he said. "All of a sudden, the playing field changes because someone else wasn't."

"I don't expect us to have been fully heard in the compromise that comes, and that is very negative for us," he added.

The planned ban was a key part of the EU's strategy to drive the continent's decarbonisation and boost the development of electric vehicles.

Campaigners calling for the EU to scrap it say the bloc should allow other technologies including plug-in hybrids, biofuels and e-fuels.

(Reporting by Marie Mannes; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

((marie.mannes@thomsonreuters.com; +46 8 502 423 82))