CO₂ emission standards for new heavy-duty vehicles, MEPs on Environment Committee called on to vote on text tabled by Bas Eickhout

On Tuesday 24 October, the members of the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) will be asked to vote on the draft report on CO₂ emission reduction targets for heavy-duty vehicles. This proposal, introduced in February by the European Commission (see EUROPE 13121/1), targets lorries as well as urban, rural and long-distance buses, which together account for more than 6% of total greenhouse gas emissions and 25% of emissions from road transport in the EU. At the Council, the European environment ministers reached a political agreement (‘general approach’) on 16 October (see EUROPE 13272/4). 

Under the Commission’s initial proposal, emissions from new trucks and buses are to be reduced by 45% by 2030, 65% by 2035 and 90% by 2040, with the emphasis on the use of batteries and hydrogen as energy sources. Yannick Jadot (French, Greens/EFA), initially rapporteur for the text (see EUROPE 13205/14), submitted a draft report to the ENVI Committee on 26 May. However, responsibility for the text has since been transferred to Bas Eickhout (Dutch, Greens/EFA).

 A major point of contention is compromise amendment 7A, supported by S&D, Greens/EFA and The Left, which calls for a more ambitious reduction of 92.5% by 2040, while amendment 7A bis, supported by the EPP and Renew Europe, aligns the reductions with the initial proposal of 90%.

Another sticking point is the potential introduction of recognition for sustainable and renewable fuels. Compromise amendment 18, supported by the EPP and ECR groups, on requests from the road transport sector, raises this issue, highlighting the need for a registration system for vehicles using CO₂-neutral fuels and introducing the concept of a “carbon correction factor”. Furthermore, these fuels are presented as a key solution for situations where alternatives such as electric or hydrogen-powered vehicles are not viable.

 For the Renew Europe group, the key to convergence could lie in maintaining the 90% emissions reduction target while avoiding incorporating recognition of sustainable and renewable fuels into legislation. It is around this central position that the decisive votes on 24 October are likely to be concentrated.

Read the compromise amendments: https://aeur.eu/f/97o (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)