Germany is pushing the European Union to ensure that the automotive industry is not penalized for failing to meet carbon emission limits in 2025, thereby avoiding fines that could amount to billions of euros.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has now stated that the European Union should not impose fines, but rather facilitate a more reasonable and pragmatic transition to electric mobility.
“The money should remain with the companies for the modernization of the industry itself and the businesses,” Scholz said in statements to journalists.
It should be noted that according to European Union (EU) regulations, the average CO2 emissions of new passenger cars registered in the EU must be 15% lower by 2025 and 35% lower by 2030 compared to the emission limits valid in 2021.
However, the automotive industry acknowledges that the proposed target for 2025 is unlikely to be achieved given the decline in demand for electric vehicles.
This position has already led German Vice Chancellor and Minister for Climate Action, Robert Habeck, to support companies that consider the EU regulations quite stringent and to make it clear that he is open to temporarily suspending fines in 2025 if companies can offset the exceeded CO2 targets in 2026 and 2027.
