City bans propel diesel's demise in Europe
With urban pollution rising up the political agenda, high emissions and a poor public image could prove terminal for the road fuel
Things are not going well for the diesel industry in Europe. A court decision—made on 27 February—allowing German cities to ban diesel cars was followed a day later by news that Rome wants to ban the fuel's use in its city centre by 2024. Paris, Madrid, Mexico City and Athens have also all announced plans to ban the fuel from city centres by 2025. Germany's Federal Administrative Court ruled that cities can ban diesel-fuelled cars to tackle local air pollution, rather than wait for a national standard to be developed. That makes it more likely that cities with high levels of pollutants—including nitrogen oxides (NOx)—such as Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, Munich and Cologne, could follow suit. As OE
Also in this section
10 March 2026
From Venezuela to Hormuz, the US—backed by the most powerful military force ever assembled—is redrawing not only oil and gas flows but also the global balance of energy power
10 March 2026
By shutting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has cut exports of distillate-rich Middle Eastern crude, jet fuel and diesel, and is holding the energy market hostage
10 March 2026
Eni’s director for global gas and LNG portfolio, Cristian Signoretto, discusses how demand will respond to rising LNG supply, and how the company is expanding its own gas and LNG operations through disciplined, capital-efficient investments
9 March 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis sees increases in output from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Kazakhstan among others before region’s murky descent
