The Age of Abundance: Electrification Is the Silver Bullet for Transport Decarbonization at COP30
By Michael Lohscheller, CEO of Polestar
As world leaders gather at COP30 in Belém to update their national climate commitments, one solution stands out as available and ready to use: the electrification of road transport.
Every country’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) should include clear commitments to phase out fossil-fueled vehicles and accelerate the shift to electric mobility. While science has long been clear, technology and public readiness have now caught up. Simply put: there is no excuse for not acting; for not making the shift.
This year, for the first time in history, renewable energy has generated more electricity than coal globally (Ember, 2025). That milestone marks more than progress in energy systems — it is a sign of a new economic mindset. We are moving from an era built on scarcity and extraction to one grounded in sustainable abundance. When power comes from the sun, wind, and human ingenuity, prosperity is no longer something we take from the planet, but something we create with it.
Transport is one of the sectors that gets its own thematic day at COP30, being such a huge contributor to global warming. In Europe alone, it accounts for nearly one-third of total greenhouse gas emissions. The solution is right in front of us: electric vehicles are widely available, technically mature, and proven to scale. Electrifying cars is a silver bullet for decarbonization that every country should reflect in their NDCs at COP30.
Europe is showing what this can look like. In its updated NDC, the EU reaffirms its 2035 target for 100% zero-emission new vehicles. Sticking to this target could create long-term prosperity and jobs for the decades to come. Reversing course would do the opposite: extending the life of outdated industries for a few short years while the rest of the world moves ahead.
The EU’s electricity sector is now 62% less greenhouse gas–intensive than it was in 1990. Renewable energy growth, combined with innovations like bi-directional charging, allows electric cars to act as mobile energy hubs — storing power and feeding it back to the grid. This approach creates a model where transport decarbonization, energy resilience, and industrial renewal work hand in hand.
The UNEP’s gap report on the so far submitted NDC’s was published Nov 4 and shows we’re wildly off the mark and headed towards exceeding the 1.5-degree global warming already in the next decade. The electric car is one of the most accessible pieces of climate technology ever made. It sits in driveways, not laboratories or reports. It connects people directly to the energy transition. Solving the climate crisis is a monumental challenge, and every win counts. Let’s catch this silver bullet.
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