CO2 proposal for light commercial vehicles must be modified

Hanover, 21/09/2010 – The legislative proposal for reducing CO2 emissions from light commercial vehicles, adopted by the European Commission in October 2009 and subject to approval by the European Parliament and Member States later this year, must become much more tailored to the specific vehicle segment and grant sufficient lead-time.

The European automobile industry is proceeding at full pace to reduce further CO2 emissions from its vehicles and needs a sound policy and legislative framework to support its efforts. The current proposal, however, does not address the particular features of the targeted vehicle segment. Transporters and vans are exclusively bought by commercial operators, whose purchase criteria are determined by their businesses. In many cases, fuel efficiency is already a main purchase factor and, hence, the vehicle market offers a competitive, efficient product range. In other cases, load factor, load volume or interior (re)fitting may be the dominant issue, with subsequent limited opportunity to change the vehicle specifications that most determine fuel efficiency.

The legislative proposal, in addition, does not ensure sufficient industrial lead-time and proposes an unfeasible 2020 limit value. Lead-time is essential to sustain investments and adapt vehicles at a reasonable time in their product cycle, keeping them affordable. Light commercial vehicles have a substantially longer development phase as well as product cycle than passenger cars.

The auto industry calls for a thorough analysis of the proposal’s impact on the economy, employment and the environment, in particular with regard to setting a long-term target. Penalties, if at all part of the legislation, should be based on the carbon price in the European Emission Trading Scheme. Furthermore, a comprehensive package of market incentives would help ensure that fleet renewal takes place, which is essential to achieve the CO2 emission reduction objectives.


About ACEA

  • The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) is the Brussels-based trade association of the 14 major car, van, truck and bus producers in Europe.
  • The ACEA commercial vehicle members are DAF Trucks, Daimler Truck, Ford Trucks, Iveco Group, MAN Truck & Bus, Scania, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, and Volvo Group.
  • Visit www.acea.auto for more information about ACEA, and follow us on www.twitter.com/ACEA_auto or www.linkedin.com/company/ACEA/.
  • Contact: Cara McLaughlin, Communications Director, cm@acea.auto, +32 485 88 66 47.

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About the EU automobile industry

  • 13.0 million Europeans work in the automotive sector
  • 11.5% of all manufacturing jobs in the EU
  • €374.6 billion in tax revenue for European governments
  • €101.9 billion trade surplus for the European Union
  • Over 7% of EU GDP generated by the auto industry
  • €59.1 billion in R&D spending annually, 31% of EU total
Content type Press release
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