The European Union executive will propose at least a 30% reduction target for CO2 emissions from trucks by 2030, an EU source said on Monday, as the bloc seeks to slash greenhouse gas emissions.
The target will be the first-ever CO2 standard for trucks in the EU, which has no limits on what accounts for almost one quarter of the bloc's transport-related emissions.
Countries such as the United States, China, Japan and Canada have already set targets to reduce CO2 emissions from trucks.
Ambitious Goals
Environmental campaigners alongside France and some other EU governments have pushed for an ambitious CO2 reduction target of at least 24% for 2025 and 34-45% for 2030.
The Commission will also propose an intermediary target of 15% and introduce an incentive system of credits to reward manufacturers that invest more in low-carbon technologies, the source said.
Credits will be allowed to relax a manufacturer's annual CO2 targets for heavy-duty vehicles by no more than 3%, and buses, coaches and small lorries by 1.5%.
Europe's Climate Commissioner, Miguel Arias Cañete, has had a flurry of meetings with the auto industry and environment campaigners in the past four months, leading up to Thursday's unveiling of the European Commission's draft legislation.
Other EU Commissioners will vote on Wednesday to approve the proposal, which then needs to win the backing of national governments and the European Parliament.
Emission Cut
A 30% target would cut about 54 million tonnes of CO2 from the bloc's emissions from 2020 to 2030, or roughly the size of Sweden's yearly output, according to the Commission's estimates.
It argues that the benefits outweigh the technological cost of meeting the new CO2 standards, leading to lower fuel consumption, reduced transport company bills, job creation, and a more competitive auto industry.
Europe's powerful car industry lobbied this month for a 16% tailpipe CO2 reduction between 2019 and 2030, with an intermediate target of 7% in 2025, the ACEA industry group said in a statement.
Thursday's proposal to curb transport pollution is part of the bloc's overall pledge to cut emissions by at least 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. It follows new draft rules on CO2 standards for cars.
News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
