Slowing down Europe's EV transition is risky

European Commission rule changes may make car manufacturers uncompetitive, warns ECIU’s Colin Walker

The European Commission has announced a new Automotive Package which revises the previous ambition to end sales of new petrol and diesel cars across the European Union from 2035.

The losers here are European families who will be left behind in petrol and hybrid cars that are hundreds of Euros more expensive to drive. Recent EU data shows that hybrids use 490% more fuel than their manufacturers claim. 

But there are clear risks too for the European car industry that, in attempting to slow the EV transition, could well become ever more uncompetitive as the world drives forward with electrification.

Some are already suggesting the UK should follow the EU’s example in watering down its own EV policies, but to do so would cost British families by keeping them in dirtier and more expensive petrol cars for longer. 

Stable policy will give companies the confidence to invest billions in the UK’s charging infrastructure, and will avoid jeopardising investments in our car industry and its supply chains. It was government policy that saw Sunderland chosen to build Nissan's original electric Leaf, and today the latest Nissan EV has started rolling off the production lines in the North East, securing jobs for years to come.

Colin Walker is head of transport at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU)