EV Sales Growth Is Slowing. Are Hybrids the Solution?

A global shift toward zero-emission vehicles is taking longer than expected, complicating efforts to decarbonize road transport and alleviate urban pollution. The car industry is pushing a stopgap solution: hybrid vehicles that combine a traditional internal combustion engine with batteries and electric motors.

The idea appears to have won over the European Union, which in December abandoned a quasi-ban on combustion-engine cars set for 2035 and gave hybrid vehicles a key role in its push to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.