The Diplomat
The 27 EU Member States agreed yesterday on a proposal by the Spanish Presidency to delay the entry into force of the so-called Euro 7, the European Commission’s regulation for the reduction of atmospheric pollutant emissions from road transport, in order to facilitate the transition of the automobile industry towards the production of the so-called ‘clean car’ in 2035.
The industry ministers of the 27, meeting in Brussels in the framework of the Competitiveness Council, yesterday adopted their position (“general approach”) on the Euro 7 Regulation, which lays down rules on the type-approval not only of motor vehicles and engines, but also of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles with regard to their emissions and battery durability.
The new regulation covers for the first time, in a single legal act, emission limits for passenger cars, vans, buses and trucks. Once adopted at yesterday’s ministerial meeting, it will have to be discussed by the European Parliament and the European Commission.
The general approach maintains the existing emission limits and test conditions for light-duty vehicles, although, in the case of heavy-duty vehicles, the emission limits are reduced and the test conditions are slightly adjusted. Separately, and under this “general approach”, the 27 agreed yesterday to delay the entry into force of Euro 7 from 2025 to 2027 for cars and until 2029 for trucks. The Euro 7 standard also contains a special provision on city buses to ensure consistency with the new target of eliminating CO₂ emissions from these vehicles, proposed for 2030.
The aim of these decisions is to strike the right balance between stringent vehicle emission requirements and additional investments for the industry, at a time when European automakers are in the midst of a transformation towards zero-emission car production, the EU reported. Therefore, as stated by the acting Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Héctor Gómez, the aim is to help the sector’s industry “to make the definitive leap towards non-polluting cars in 2035”.
“The Spanish Presidency has been sensitive to the different demands and requests of the Member States, and we believe that with this proposal we have achieved broad support and a balance in the investment costs of the brands, in addition to improving the environmental benefits derived from the Regulation,” said Héctor Gómez.
The EU has been progressively tightening emissions limits for road vehicles since the first set of standards, known as Euro 1, in 1992. The sale of new cars emitting CO2 is scheduled to be banned in the EU by 2035.
