France pushes for leniency on car CO2 caps

The French Presidency is upping the pressure on EU governments to water down controversial proposals requiring car manufacturers to curb the CO2 emissions of new vehicles by 18% by 2012, according to a document seen by EURACTIV.

“The French are speeding up the process to reach a deal among member states before the plenary vote in Parliament,” Greenpeace transport campaigner Franziska Achterberg told EURACTIV, explaining that after last week’s vote in the environment committee, Parliament had become “a risky candidate”.

Indeed, last week, MEPs in the committee took many by surprise by voting down an “industry-friendly” compromise proposal between the EPP-ED and Socialist groups that would have diluted the Commission’s original plans by awarding carmakers a three-year phase-in period, rather than enforcing a strict 2012 deadline (EURACTIV 26/09/08). 

The phase-in – which would allow carmakers to dispense 40% of their fleet from the 130g/km target in 2012, 30% in 2013 and 20% in 2014, with full compliance only required as of 2015 – was originally proposed by Parliament’s industry committee (EURACTIV 02/09/08), but is now also being defended in the French draft. 

The move will come as a huge relief to carmakers, which have been pushing for the EU to hold off its CO2 policy until 2015, saying it needs “lead-time” to make the “hugely complicated and capital intensive” adjustments to vehicles and engines required to meet the target. The development of new cars takes up to five years, while those that will be on the market in 2012 have already left the drawing board, the industry points out. 

France is also seeking reduced fines for offenders that only slightly exceed their targets and wants to hand out extra credits to carmakers if they use innovative ways to produce cleaner cars or if they sell electric and other very low-emission vehicles. It argues that this will act as an incentive to bring these products to market. 

France seems open to the long-term goal of 95g/km by 2020 that Parliament’s environment committee and many governments have been pushing for. The French say the idea would provide “the appropriate planning security to bring forward the necessary investments in new technology”. Nevertheless, they suggest the target should be fixed somewhere in the range of 95-110 grammes. 

The French compromise proposal, which largely reflects a backdoor deal reached between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel last June (EURACTIV 10/06/08), is likely to be put to national representatives next Wednesday (8 October) and would serve as the basis for negotiations between environment ministers later this month.

But Greenpeace says the whole proposal “is clearly unbalanced and undemocratic”. “France is putting forward what is essentially a German industry position on this legislation […] This deal would be bad news for European consumers and the environment, and would show contempt for the position of the Commission and the Parliament’s environment committee,” the NGO stressed, calling on France to stand up to “the flawed arguments of corporate lobbyists at a time when the world’s climate is at stake”. 

Greenpeace further highlights the absurdity of calling for “planning security” now, when “EU environment ministers initially called for a target of 120g CO2/km by 2012 as far back as 1994”. Average EU car emissions currently stand at 158g/km, and Greenpeace says the loopholes in the French compromise draft would in fact allow manufacturers to maintain emissions at “a staggering 161g CO2/km” as late as 2012. 

Read more with Euractiv

MEPs hail ‘defeat’ of car industry lobby on CO2

Against expectations and despite strong pressure from industry, the Parliament’s Environment Committee yesterday (25 September) voted down a compromise proposal that would have diluted EU ambitions to cut cars’ average CO2 emissions.