The European Ministers for the Environment and Climate, meeting in council in Luxembourg on Tuesday 20 June, held a policy debate on the proposal for a regulation aimed at establishing CO2 emission standards for new heavy commercial vehicles (see EUROPE 13121/1).
The aim of the proposal is to further reduce CO2 emissions in the road transport sector in order to bring the regulations into line with the European Union’s climate objectives. The emission reduction targets for 2030 will be strengthened and new targets will be set for 2035 and 2040. In addition, the draft regulation provides for the inclusion of new categories of vehicles, in particular buses, in the targets set.
The ministers discussed the proposed target levels, as well as the scope and flexibilities envisaged.
The various delegations agreed on the need to broaden the scope of CO2 standards for heavy commercial vehicles in order to support the transition to net zero emission mobility.
Some Member States have called for a higher level of ambition, both in terms of percentage targets for overall emissions reductions and the timetable.
The French minister, Christophe Béchu, supported the need to strengthen the targets for 2030 and to “introduce ambitious new targets” for the subsequent stages, in 2035 and 2040. The German minister also stressed the importance of maintaining a “high level of ambition”, while insisting on a high degree of flexibility, particularly with regard to intermediate targets and exceptions for small manufacturers. The Austrian minister, Leonore Gewessler, for her part, spoke out in favour of “stricter conditions” for flexibility.
For her part, the Spanish minister, Teresa Ribera, who also insisted on facilitating the transition for manufacturers and users, stressed the importance of providing financial support for investment in zero-emission vehicles.
In addition, some delegations asked for more categories of vehicles to be included in the targets, in particular vehicles for professional use. The Austrian minister said: “We believe that the targets for professional vehicles should be further encouraged”. The Danish minister, Magnus Heunicke, has called for the scope of the targets to be extended to include local vehicles and small trucks.
Conversely, other delegations, who felt that the targets were too ambitious, called for them to be more realistic. A number of economic and social considerations should also be taken into account. The Bulgarian minister stressed the need to take account of countries with low GDP. He also proposed taking transport infrastructure into account in the discussions and developing ambitious green corridors, a point also emphasised by the Dutch minister, Vivianne Heijnen. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)