Brussels, 02/03/2010 (Agence Europe) - Meeting up for the first full Competitiveness Council under the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU on Monday 1 March, EU industry ministers decided on an outline strategy for developing green vehicles amidst a growing battle among car manufacturers over standardisation. On Monday, two countries championing electric cars, Spain and France, called for early standardisation in order to ensure there is a single EU standard for recharging electric car batteries (see EUROPE 10075 for an overview of the February 2010 Competiveness Council in San Sebastian). Other member states, however, like the United Kingdom, fear that giving too much support to electric cars will have a negative impact on the development of other forms of technology, like hybrid vehicles developed by their own car industries. Member states in central Europe, where many car assembly plants are located, want to ensure that the next generation of cars is not used as an excuse for moving car plants out of their countries. Instructed by the ministers to come up with an EU action plan by May 2010 for the development of clean and energy-efficient cars, EU Industry Commissioner Antonio Tajani promised that standardisation would be an important aspect of its action plan. The challenges ahead are formidable, as the Spanish industry minister, Miguel Sebastian, explained, saying that electric engine standards needed to be invented, along with standard batteries and car recharge points. Tajani believes that standardisation will be key in ensuring safety and interoperability and said on Monday that he would appreciate it if manufacturers would commit to standardisation and publish a statement to this effect. (E.H./transl.fl)