Brussels, 10/06/2008 (Agence Europe) - Confounding all expectations, German Chancellor, Angela Merkel and the president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, meeting on 9 June in Straubing for the 9th Council of Franco-German ministers, obtained a bilateral agreement on principles for reducing CO2 emissions from cars in the EU. In a joint declaration, the two leaders affirmed their support for the target proposed by the European Commission in February 2007 for compelling car manufacturers to lower CO2 emissions from cars in the EU to an average of 120/130 grams per kilometre by 2020 (EUROPE 9361). They explain that, “France and Germany share the common objective of lowering emissions from new vehicles and regard this reduction as a critical step on the way to achieve the aim of reducing CO2 emissions by 20 % in the European Union in 2020 and 30 % in the case of an international agreement. Therefore, they are strongly committed to a quick adoption of the EU regulation on cars emissions standards which will set up the necessary regulatory framework”. The two leaders say that they agree on the Commission's methodology for modulating the target, based on the average number of vehicles sold. They also say they support the Commission's proposed formula for the review, whose assessment would be based on the observation of the 2006-2009 period and should take place in 2011 at the latest, with implementation scheduled for 2015. They do say, however, that they approve of the longer term objective of 2020 to allow industry the necessary security for obtaining investment needed for the new technology. They explain that, “This long-term goal should be consistent with ambitious but realistic expectations on technological progress till then”. They believe the decision should be based on a thorough impact assessment and fixed in the range of 95-110 gram of CO2 per kilometre. The text explains, “Our countries support a substantial phasing-in beyond the Commission proposal, which is consistent with the aim of environmental protection and takes into consideration the technological capacities of the car manufacturing industry”. The text also explains that penalties should be adapted for small deviations of carmakers from their target. It also explains that, “It is proven that a number of green technologies generate substantial reductions of emissions and are not yet taken into consideration during the standard measuring cycle of the emissions of a car”. The text concludes that the directive should allow the carmakers to be given a credit, up to a certain limit (from 6 to 8 gram) for the average of their fleet, related to the use of these green technologies, provided the directive delineates a precise and objective European framework setting for approving technologies and assessing the extent of their contribution to the reduction of emissions. Addressing the press, Ms Merkel insisted that this target be applied to new car models but only gradually for cars that have already been built. She did, however, recognise that details of the agreement should be ironed-out. Germany, the manufacturer of big saloons that are more polluting than smaller French models said that in principle, all cars should contribute to reducing these emissions. (E.H./trans.rh)