The European Commission on Monday opposed calls by carmakers to delay the introduction of 2025 CO2 emission reduction targets for cars, arguing that the sector has had plenty of time to prepare, Euractiv reports.
Under the EU’s CO2 emissions requirements for cars and vans, carmakers have until next year to reduce the average CO2 emissions of their vehicles by 15 per cent from 2021 levels.
However, with electric vehicle sales lagging behind expectations, in an informal document circulated over the weekend, some industry players called for a two-year delay to avoid the risk of billions of dollars in fines. Tim McPhie, Commission spokesperson for climate action, told Euractiv:
“The 2025 target requires – and enables – manufacturers to develop a comprehensive compliance strategy.”
Emphasising that the 2025 target has not changed since the last review of CO2 standards in 2023, which introduced a de facto ban on new petrol and diesel cars from 2035, McPhie added:
“The industry has had quite some time to prepare for this next phase in the transition. The targets that apply from 2025 were adopted by the co-legislators in 2019.”
An industry document seen by Euractiv warns that carmakers could face fines of up to €16bn for failing to meet the EU’s 2025 target.
The document claims that in order to meet the target of 95g CO2 per kilometre by 2025, the market share of electric cars must increase to 20-22%, while the current share of all-electric cars does not exceed 15%.
The document is authored by carmaker Renault, whose CEO Luca de Meo also heads the European carmakers’ association ACEA, French newspaper Le Monde reported.
Renault representatives had no comment.
ACEA declined to comment on the document, but referred to a statement issued last week that said “the EU is still missing crucial conditions for the mass market adoption of zero-emission cars and vans.”
