Vitoria, September 29, 2023
In July this year, the Council of the European Union (the body representing all EU governments) formally adopted a new Regulation on Alternative Fuels Infrastructure in Europe, the provisions of which will start to be implemented shortly. This regulation is a huge boost to the decarbonization of transport (absolutely in line with the 'Target 55' package of measures to decarbonize our economy), since among other things it sets clear and ambitious targets for the deployment of charging infrastructure for public use, both electricity and hydrogen, imposing means of access and payment for them that are simple and in line with the common uses of drivers. Why is this regulation and the development that will result from its implementation very important for these decarbonization targets? I share some figures: transport is responsible for almost 25% of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU, and 71% of these come from road transport; so it seems that if we want to reduce our overall emissions this segment should be the one to focus our greatest decarbonization efforts.
However, the same Council, through an agreement of its industry ministers, has reached an agreement in recent days in which they propose to delay the entry into force of the Euro 7 standard proposed by the European Commission (scheduled for July 1, 2025) in which a reduction of pollutant emissions from cars, trucks and buses sold in the EU in the near future was set. And this, in the words of the Council itself, with the aim of protecting and preserving the European motor industry.
And with this, we already have a whole series of contradictions on the table:
- If European regulation is going to be tolerant of polluting vehicles for longer than expected, what is the incentive for private companies that are betting on investing in alternative fuel infrastructure? Their rates of return have just increased, making their investments less attractive.
- And what are the incentives for the European motor industry to accelerate its investments and complete the transition of its vehicles to non-polluting models? There is no longer such a rush...
- And, last but not least, what kind of message is being sent from the highest levels of our public administrations to the final consumers of these vehicles? Should we already consider replacing our traditional combustion vehicle with an emission-free one, or should we wait a little longer?
I would not like anyone reading this opinion piece to think that I am not taking into account the weight in the European economy (and especially in employment!) of the motor industry, and the impact that the transition in which it is immersed is going to have. All the industrial reconversions I have known have been hard on their sectors, and they have
This entailed enormous sacrifices for all those affected. But when a disruptive event occurs that forces the unstoppable transformation of a sector, history shows us that wanting to delay or even slow it down only causes those who have put up the greatest resistance to be relegated to irrelevant market positions or even to disappear, overtaken or replaced by those who decisively and without hesitation knew how to seize the opportunity.
I honestly believe that it is a terrible mistake to bet on not losing: not losing profits, not losing jobs, not losing market share by introducing barriers to foreign products... And I sense that the economic and social cost of some measures scares our political representatives. But in the face of the inevitable we must bet on winning: to win in investments, to win in terms of deadlines, to win in new companies and new jobs, and to win in terms of political and regulatory commitment.
Society as a whole has already decided that it wants a change that puts sustainability at the center of everything, and mobility is just one part of the many, many things that are changing forever. Now it's up to each uno to decide how we want to be part of this change.
David García-Pardo Montoya
CEO at VELTIUM SMART CHARGERS