Günter Schiffmann/Bloomberg News
Trucks in the European Union are no more fuel efficient than they were more than a decade ago, according to a report released on December 3, with growing calls to regulate emissions from heavy vehicles in the same way as cars.
The fuel efficiency of heavy vehicles, responsible for a third of EU carbon dioxide emissions but only a small fraction of vehicles on the road, has remained unchanged since the early 20th century, the study by the International Council on Clean Transportation found. The first decade of the twenty-first century.
In contrast, the United States in June proposed stricter truck emissions standards, which researchers estimated could lead to a 33% reduction in fuel consumption rates from 2010 levels.
“Truck makers claim we can trust them to deliver more efficient trucks,” said William Todds, freight director at campaign group Transport and Environment.
“The reality is that over the past decade, they have made almost no progress on fuel efficiency while for most of that time they have allegedly run a cartel. It is time to shift gears and introduce American-style fuel economy standards,” he said.
The report comes as European Union antitrust regulators investigate some of Europe’s largest truck makers for setting prices and coordinating the introduction of new emissions technologies, according to a copy of the statement of objections seen by Reuters.
The truck manufacturers accused of running the cartel – Daimler, Volvo, Iveco, Volkswagen-controlled Scania, MAN and DAF – may face fines of up to 10% of their annual revenues if found guilty.
The study by ICCT, the same group that exposed German carmaker Volkswagen’s tampering with diesel nitrogen oxide emissions tests, found that the share of CO2 emissions from trucks is growing in the EU.
The European Automobile Manufacturers Association, an industry group, said fuel consumption per tonne-kilometre of today’s trucks has fallen by at least 60% since 1965.
“For every ton transported, this resulted in a fuel consumption of approximately one liter of diesel per 100 tonne kilometres, resulting in a significant reduction in CO2 emissions,” said Eric Gunnaert, Secretary General of ACEA, whose members include Daimler and Renault. “. And Volkswagen.
Gunnaert pointed to a study by the Transport and Mobility Research Institute Leuven that showed the industry is on track to meet its commitment to reduce fuel consumption of new vehicles by 20% by 2020, compared to 2005.
The ICCT study analyzed sales trends in the European Union and showed that more heavy and large vehicles were being sold in the 28-nation bloc, similar to those in the US market.
The study recommends setting fuel efficiency standards or CO2 limits for heavy vehicles to reduce emissions. The European Union has introduced a limit of 95 grams of CO2 per kilometer by 2021 for cars and vans, but has not yet done the same for trucks, although several countries have called for it.
