8 November 2017
WindEurope commends targets for vehicle electrification
WindEurope today commended proposals in the European Commission’s Clean Mobility Package that call for 30% of new car sales to be zero emission vehicles by 2030.
Carmakers exceeding this target will be rewarded with credits they can use to meet their CO2 reduction targets. But the Commission’s proposals fall short of imposing penalties for carmakers not reaching this benchmark.
Following the example of the Netherlands, the UK and France that have already made ambitious commitments to end the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles (by 2030, 2040 and 2040 respectively), Member States should be inspired to go even further than the Commission’s proposals.
WindEurope CEO, Giles Dickson: “Well done to the Commission for proposing that 30% of new car sales should be low carbon by 2030 – and in proposing a credit scheme to drive this transition. Wind energy is ready to give its full support to transport decarbonisation. Wind and other renewables will be 50% of Europe’s electricity by 2030 – so consumers can be sure that at least half the power in their EVs is clean.
“But the interplay between clean transport and wind energy goes beyond zero-emissions mobility. Electric car batteries have great potential as a form of electricity storage. This will add to the flexibility of the power system and help integrate higher shares of renewables. And the further uptake of electric vehicles could increase power demand by 100TWh annually, strengthening investment signals for renewable technologies.”
