Car CO2 targets: EU Green Deal must be mutually binding; member states need to invest in infrastructure now
In this video, Oliver Zipse – ACEA President and CEO of BMW Group – explains that Europe’s car makers are open to even higher CO2 reduction targets for 2030, provided that the European Commission puts the right framework in place.
Zipse stresses that the auto industry is fully committed to the ambitious EU Green Deal, but that targets must be mutually binding. In light of the upcoming review of the CO2 standards for cars and vans, this means that higher reduction targets for industry have to go hand-in-hand with equally ambitious infrastructure commitments from national governments.
Higher CO2 reduction targets for industry have to go hand-in-hand with equally ambitious infrastructure commitments from national governments.
Indeed, Europe has to set binding targets for EU member states in order to guarantee that the necessary charging points and hydrogen stations for alternatively-powered cars and vans are going to be deployed in time.
Oliver Zipse: “We urge the European Commission to produce a framework with the revised AFID that will result in binding targets for sufficient infrastructure across all member states. Without these targets, our transformation will lose momentum.”
The President of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) also points at the social importance of rolling out a dense infrastructure network that covers the entire EU.
Zipse: “An extensive charging network allows manufacturers to keep battery sizes moderate, thus lowering the costs of vehicles.” This is crucial for making e-mobility affordable, he argues, as it will allow for the electrification of budget-friendly cars in the €15,000-30,000 price range.
“The typical EU household does not have the budget for big and expensive batteries. Without charging options, mobility for these customers will effectively be limited,” the ACEA President cautions.
The typical EU household does not have the budget for big and expensive batteries. Without charging options, mobility for these customers will effectively be limited.
Oliver Zipse delivered this video message on 22 June 2021 as part of the Politico Live event ‘Fasten your seatbelts: The race to greener cars’. A video recording of the full, one-hour discussion is available here.
