Status: 03/16/2023 10:14 pm
Transport Minister Wissing presented a solution to the dispute over the planned end of combustion engines in new cars in Brussels. He is fighting for a path that does not require the approval of the European Parliament and EU states.
In the dispute for the end of new cars with combustion engines, the Federal Minister of Transport, Volker Wissing (FDP), presented a proposal for a solution to the European Commission.
As seen in a letter from the minister’s office to Deputy Commissioner Frans Timmermans’ office, Wissing is pushing for a path that does not require the approval of the European Parliament and EU states. At the same time, he calls for “short-term legally binding measures”, as the letter, which is available to the ARD studio in Brussels, says.
“Delegated act” to complement
Specifically, Wissing proposes a so-called delegated act that would complement the currently blocked combustion engine deal. The compromise reached would therefore not need to be amended. The European Commission can pass such a legal act, after which Parliament and EU states have two months to raise objections.
Negotiators from the European Parliament and EU states had already agreed in the autumn that only new emission-free cars can be registered in the EU from 2035. A confirmation from EU states that was scheduled for last week was canceled due to demands additional from Germany.
In particular, the FDP calls for new cars with combustion engines that use artificial fuels produced with green electricity, so-called e-fuels, to still be able to be registered after 2035.
New category of vehicles for e-fuels
Wissing-Haus’ approach now aims to create the possibility of a new e-fuels-only vehicle category within the framework of the existing Euro 6 emissions standard. When the combustion engine phase-out law comes into effect, a delegated act should allow for these “e-fuel only” vehicles to be compensated against fleet target values.
So-called fleet limits are specifications for manufacturers about how many greenhouse gases newly built cars can emit during operation. In fact, this value is predicted to drop to zero by 2035, which effectively means the end of new combustion engines.
However, there are exceptions, for example for special vehicles such as emergency vehicles or wheelchair accessible cars. Finally, “in an appropriate legal framework”, a definition for completely CO2-neutral fuels should be created, according to the letter. The ministry is asking the commission to “develop an ambitious and binding timeline”.
E-fuels are considered climate-neutral, but until now have been twice as expensive as conventional fuels. Premium manufacturers such as Porsche and BMW have recently campaigned for e-fuels.
Timmermans ready for “interpretation” of the deal
Timmermans struggled for years to convince member states to scrap combustion engines, forged parliamentary majorities – the fact that Wissing of all people was on the brakes rankled with him.
However, Timmermans indicated that a face-saving solution was possible. “I am confident that we can find a way”, said the Dutch commissioner, “to an interpretation of the agreement that also satisfies the German authorities”.
That is, it is agreed that it should not be reopened under any circumstances. It should just be interpreted differently. However, it is still unclear how this could be.
With information from Helga Schmidt, ARD studio in Brussels