Report: EU to Allow Automakers to Pool CO2 Emissions to Reach Target
16 December 2007
Reuters. Automakers will be allowed to Carmakers will be allowed to form pools to spread the burden of meeting new limits on carbon dioxide emissions, according to a draft EU document obtained by Reuters.
The rules will require average CO2 emissions from new cars to meet a 120 g/km target by 2012; vehicles must reach an average of 130 g/km, and the other 10 g/km reduction will come from other measures, such as biofuels.
The proposals have sparked tension between makers of lighter cars with lower emissions and heavier cars with higher emissions. One of the outstanding issues, to be decided next week, involves how to distribute the burden among them.
A copy of the draft directive did not spell out how that would happen. But in a nod to calls for a type of emissions trading system among manufacturers, it said companies could team up to meet those goals.
The draft is to be published this coming week.
And this is how Porche/Ferrari/BMW etc wil meet the 120 g/CO2 mandate.
Posted by: GreyFlcn | 16 December 2007 at 08:35 PM
I like that - a market-driven feebate program. If not enough small cars are sold to offset the guzzling cars emissions, "consumption unit" price will go up - potentially reducing the price of small cars, but very efficiently making large cars (US manufactured ones in particular, as well as the stupid SUV, which are too large to fit european city centers anyway) even more costly.
I guess you all have heared that in the next 2-3 years, many european countries (including germany, france and austria) will introduce even more pronounced differential taxation based on car consumption (ie. less taxes for cars < 120g/km, much more hefty registration / insurance taxes above 160 g/km).
It'll be interesting how this playes out, when the taxes alone are in the vincinity of 40-60% of the base price for a SUV...
(Well, the manufacturers could start selling SUVs significantly closer to the real cost such a behemoth cost to build - i wonder how many current owner will get the feeling of having been ripped off ;).
R.
Posted by: realarms | 17 December 2007 at 02:52 PM