Member States need to adopt a more coherent approach to incentives for cleaner vehicles, said Erik Jonnaert, Secretary General of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), on Thursday 27 June, during the presentation to the press of a guide containing the latest data from the European automotive industry.
According to Mr Jonnaert, the benefits granted to stimulate demand for cleaner vehicles vary greatly from one country to another and this would be one of the causes of the slow transition to cleaner vehicles. "Today, you get better or worse benefits depending on the country you live in", he said with regret.
He therefore called on national governments to ensure that consumer incentives for these vehicles are "strong, sustainable and coherent", while making it clear that seeking to influence citizens' purchasing behaviour is not the responsibility of the European Union, but the responsibility of national governments.
He also emphasised: "In Europe, we need to adopt a more coherent approach to ensure that all consumers, all European citizens can have access to these vehicles under the same conditions".
In order to "ensure consistency in the benefits they provide", Mr Jonnaert then encouraged all Member States to learn from each other by exchanging their existing good practices, citing Norway and the Netherlands as examples.
In addition, Mr Jonnaert stressed the need for more "clarity on investments in charging infrastructure" for electric vehicles, an element that also influences purchasing behaviour and that he believes is still lacking. In his opinion, citizens still do not have enough confidence in electric vehicles, particularly with regard to their range and the means available to recharge them.
Finally, he acknowledged that car manufacturers also have a role to play, since price greatly influences the decision to buy or not a cleaner vehicle. On this point, he says he expects a reduction in the cost of batteries and therefore in the price of electric vehicles, thanks to the economies of scale generated by the increase in production volume.
Consult the European automotive industry guide 2019-2020: https://bit.ly/2RFm6bn (Original version in French by Damien Genicot - intern)