A new legal opinion describes the planned ban on combustion engines in the EU from 2035 as unlawful. Professor Martin Kment from the University of Augsburg argues that the CO2 fleet regulation, which regulates CO2 emissions in the EU, violates EU law. This could mean that the EU's plans to introduce all-electric vehicles in the future could be put on hold.
The CO2 fleet regulation stipulates how much CO2 a car manufacturer may emit per year with its vehicles registered in the EU. From 2035, there are to be no more CO2 fleet emissions at all, i.e. combustion engines are no longer to be registered. According to an expert opinion by Professor Kment, however, this plan could violate EU law.
The report raises the question of whether the EU Commission is even authorized to demand fines from car manufacturers. This is particularly explosive, as fines in the billions can be imposed for breaches of the CO2 fleet regulation. If the market for electric vehicles does not develop as planned, car manufacturers could face considerable financial burdens.
E-cars could also emit CO2, for example during production or electricity consumption, according to the report. This means that the current measurement methodology, which focuses exclusively on CO2 emissions from the exhaust pipe, may not be sufficient. It could be that combustion engines are not necessarily more harmful to the environment than electric vehicles, as previously assumed.
Renault CEO Luca de Meo and CDU MEP Dennis Radtke are calling for the regulation to be amended to allow combustion engines again. This could mean that the EU's plans to promote electric vehicles will have to be reconsidered.
The association UNITI, which commissioned the report, believes that the existing system of EU fleet regulation has been shaken by the new findings. How will the debate on the future of mobility in Europe develop and is the planned ban on combustion engines legally tenable at all?