The European Council on Monday reached agreement on the European Commission’s proposal to update and strengthen carbon dioxide emission standards for heavy vehicles.
The aim of the proposal is to further reduce CO2 emissions from the transport sector, primarily by increasing the number of zero-emission vehicles within heavy-duty fleets.
The Council backed an original proposal from the Commission, which proposed reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 45% by 2030, followed by 65% in 2035 and 90% in 2040.
Member states disagreed on the start date for rules mandating zero-emission buses in urban areas. France, the Czech Republic and Romania have appealed the Commission’s proposal to reduce emissions to zero by 2030. An agreement has now been reached that stipulates an 85% reduction in emissions by 2030 and 100% by 2035.
Much of the negotiations were dominated by debate on initial proposals for the controversial issue of the carbon correction factor (CCF) mechanism. The CCF, originally introduced by Italy, aims to “take into account the contribution of the use of sustainable transport fuels such as advanced biofuels and biogas when assessing the compliance of newly registered heavy vehicles with CO2 emission reductions.” Effectively, this will allow carbon emissions saved by using lower-carbon, but still polluting, fuels to be deducted from fleet CO2 targets.
A recent report from the non-profit research organization International Council on Clean Transportation analyzed the potential climate risks associated with the fuel credit system. It found that, in real terms, the mechanism would see CO2 reduction targets reduced by eight percentage points across the board, effectively increasing the number of combustion engine vehicles allowed to remain on the road.
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By GlobalData
The proposals for the CCF were supported by several countries including the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland. Major car companies in Germany, Austria and Denmark have raised concerns about the effects of this mechanism.
Danish officials said the system would “make it impossible to prevent the continued use of fossil fuels,” according to Euractiv. Austrian Environment Minister Leonor Gevsler added that “Volvo, Scania and Daimler have spoken out about explicitly rejecting the carbon correction factor,” echoing Germany’s suggestion that a clean carbon framework “would reduce the level of ambition of the proposal” and “undermine energy security planning.” Industry of the future.
The compromise was reached after the Commission promised to re-evaluate the role of the CCF in its 2027 review, indicating that its implementation is still several years away.
The Council’s general approach will now go to the European Parliament for negotiations before the two bodies begin tripartite talks to reach a final agreement. Parliament is expected to decide its position on October 24.
