Automobile: The European Union agrees to soften the prohibition on thermal engines after 2035, under the pressure of Berlin

The text was until further notice blocked. The European Commission and Germany announced, on Saturday March 25, having reached an agreement on a key text of the European Union climate plan on CO2 emissions from cars. “We reached an agreement with Germany on the future use of summary fuel in cars”, announced the European environment commissioner Frans Timmermans on Twitter. “Now we are going to work to adopt the CO2 standards of cars as soon as possible”, he added.

Stop the madness of the ban on thermal vehicles in 2035

Finally, and fortunately, the German government refuses to vote the text which prohibits the sale of cars with heat engine from 2035 in Europe. It must be said that the text would undermine the automotive sector in Germany (Audi, Volkswagen, Mercedes, BMW …). When France will do the same for its manufacturers ?

The reality is that even if European manufacturers do everything to produce more electric cars, the cheapest possible, no one in Europe will be ready to produce only electric vehicles at affordable prices for households in 2035. This because the obligation, voted in the European Parliament, from the end of the sale in Europe is completely above ground. In Europe, the automotive sector represents 8% of GDP and 15 million jobs. And in France 2.2 million jobs, or 8% of the working population.

As Carlos Tavares, the director of Stellantis but also Mobilians, points out, the organization of distribution and car services, to achieve this objective, it takes a gentle, economically sustainable transition, and not a cleaner date ..

When we look at the world map of the end of thermal vehicles, it is obvious: there is only in Europe that the prohibition is as fast and massive. There is certainly an identical obligation in Canada, but from 2040 only. And in the USA, only California will completely ban thermal vehicles. For the rest of the American states, from 2030, the standard will be as follows: 50% of the sales of new thermal and 50% electric vehicles … but hybrid models are counted in electric vehicles. A much more flexible approach that will not destroy jobs like it may be done in Europe. As it stands, the evaluation is 100,000 threatened jobs just for France. Moreover, it should be recalled that the sector is wrong since, in 2022, the trade deficit in the French automotive sector was 20 billion euros.

No ban on the sale of new thermal vehicles in the coming years either in China. Neither in Africa, nor at the Emirates, nor in Australia … Europeans must be careful not to scuttle themselves. Especially since the batteries require rare and semi rare metals (cobalt, graphite and lithium) which come from Brazil, China, and Turkey. Besides, China holds 70% of the chain of electric value.

Thermal vehicle prohibition card

Another consequence to be taken into account: in France, the total electrification of the car fleet would increase the annual electricity consumption by 100 TWh, an excess of 25 % compared to the current situation and up to 40 % of the nominal power consumed during peak winter hours. An increase in consumption that France cannot, currently, assume without risk of cuts. Moreover, we are already late on the deployment of recharging infrastructure for electric cars. For example, management of the vehicle flow on roads one August 1 would require 42,000 terminals of 240 kW (high power). However, today, only 4% of public terminals offer a power of more than 150 kW.

What to conclude ? That the Germans, but also the Italians and the Czechs are right to fight against this text and to defend their automotive sector. Poland and Slovakia have also suggested including vehicles rolling with bio-fuel in the goal. Opposite, we do not understand the attitude of Paris very well which pushes to keep the obligation in 2035. It should be remembered that France is one of the most decarbonized countries in the world with 4 tonnes of CO2 per inhabitant in interior emissions, or less than 1% of global CO2 emissions. While France’s GDP represents 4% of world GDP.

Comparison of deadlines

Automobile: The European Union agrees to soften the prohibition on thermal engines after 2035, under the pressure of Berlin

This agreement authorizes the future use of summary fuels in cars, a technology still in development deemed expensive, energy -consuming and polluting by NGOs.

Posted on 03/25/2023 12:31
Reading time: 1 min

The text was until further notice blocked. The European Commission and Germany announced, on Saturday March 25, having reached an agreement on a key text of the European Union climate plan on CO2 emissions from cars. “We reached an agreement with Germany on the future use of summary fuel in cars”, announced the European environment commissioner Frans Timmermans on Twitter. “Now we are going to work to adopt the CO2 standards of cars as soon as possible”, he added.

“Vehicles equipped with a combustion engine can be registered after 2035 if they exclusively use neutral fuels in terms of CO2 emissions”, The German Transport Minister, Volker Wissing, also on Twitter in turn.

Contested technology

The Commission thus agreed to soften the prohibition of thermal engines after 2035, under the pressure of Berlin. Germany had indeed amazed its European partners in early March by blocking at the last moment a regulation providing to reduce CO2 emissions to zero – climate change managers – new vehicles, in fact imposing 100% electric engines from the middle next decade. The text had already been the subject in October of an agreement between member states and negotiators of the European Parliament, with the green light of Germany, and had been approved in mid-February by the MEPs gathered in plenary.

But to justify its flip-flop, extremely rare at this stage of the procedure, Germany had claimed from the commission that it presents a proposal opening the way to vehicles operating in summary fuel fuel. This technology, which does not exist today, would consist in producing fuel from CO2 resulting from industrial activities. Defended by high -end German and Italian manufacturers, it would extend the sale of new thermal engines after 2035. Summary fuel technology is however challenged by environmental NGOs who deem it expensive, energy -consuming and polluting. Many car experts also doubt that it can impose itself on the market against electric cars whose prices should drop in the years to come.

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