11/10/2018 (Agence Europe) – The 35% target for reducing CO² emissions from new cars by 2030, agreed by the Environment Council in Luxembourg on 9 October, is less than what Paris and the most ambitious coalition (see EUROPE 12114) had championed. However, the French authorities stressed, by means of a press release on Wednesday evening, 10 October, that "the intermediate target of 15% in 2025 will ensure that manufacturers make a significant effort from the beginning of the period". Paris also stresses that achieving these objectives "will require not only real technological breakthroughs in combustion engines, but also the introduction of a large proportion of plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles in manufacturers' ranges". Another argument to promote the agreement is that the incentive or bonus system "will encourage manufacturers to include more than a third of electric and hybrid vehicles in their sales". (AN)