Biden’s goal, which is not legally binding, won the support of major U.S. and foreign automakers who warned it would require billions of dollars in government funding.

General Motors, Ford (which makes the F-150 Lightning in the top photo), and Stellantis confirmed in a joint statement that they aspire to achieve sales of 40 to 50 percent of annual U.S. volumes of electric vehicles by 2030.

Biden’s 50 percent goal and the automakers’ 40-50 percent aspiration includes battery electric, fuel cell, and plug-in hybrid vehicles or PHEVs.

Biden has repeatedly resisted calls from many Democrats to set a binding requirement for EV adoption, or to follow California and some countries in setting 2035 as a date to phase out the sale of new gasoline-powered light vehicles.

Biden’s new executive order sets a new schedule for developing new emissions standards through at least 2030 for light duty vehicles and as early as 2027 for larger vehicles. The EV goal is aimed at helping the administration address climate change, a top priority for the Biden administration, as well as counter China, which is the world’s biggest EV market and is spending heavily to develop and advance the adoption of new-energy vehicles.

The Detroit Three automakers said the aggressive EV sales goals can only be met with billions of dollars in government incentives including consumer subsidies, EV charging networks as well as investments in R&D, and incentives to expand the electric vehicle manufacturing and supply chains in the United States.

Meanwhile, Hyundai said it supports the 2030 40 to 50 percent EV sales goal. Toyota said in a statement the goal was great for the environment, and added “you can count on Toyota to do our part.”