The European Union has been working on new legislation with the goal of reducing overall carbon emissions to just 130 g/km by 2015. Many believe that electric vehicles are the best way to achieve this ultimate goal, but internal reports may not agree with this assessment, according to the Financial Times. In fact, Jean Syrota, the former French energy industry regulator, is said to have authored a 129-page document that promotes the continued use of the internal combustion engine, albeit ICEs combined with new technology and advanced biofuels. Apparently, the closest that the report comes to suggesting that EVs have any potential is to promote range-extended models that wouldn't need extremely large capacity battery packs. The report also suggests setting strict speed limits in all of Europe, including Germany.

If rumors are in any way accurate, current President of the EU and the French Republic Nicolas Sarkozy is purposely sitting on the report as it may not agree with his desired intentions for European automakers.

[Source: Financial Times]

Here's an interesting question: what does American beef treated with growth hormones have to do with the price of European motorcycles in the United States? The answer, surprisingly enough, could be plenty. It seems that the European Union has refused to lift a longstanding ban on the steroid-infused beef from the US despite a World Trade Organization order to end it. In retaliation, the US Trade Representative is considering adding a 100 percent tariff to European motorcycles with engines sized between 51cc and 500ccs.

This possible tariff is supposed to equal $116.8 million in import duties, which is what the WTO claims that the US agricultural industry misses out on yearly due to the EU ban on its meat. Considering that this is a political issue and not something directly related to the Aprilia, Beta, BMW, Fantic, Gas Gas, Husaberg, Husqvarna, KTM, Montesa, Piaggio, Scorpa, Sherco, TM and Vespa products themselves, we'll leave the comments up to others as to the fairness of the issue. We will add, though, that many US drivers have been turning to these small displacement machines in order to save a few bucks on gas.


[Source: AMA]

The telenovela story of limiting vehicle emissions in the EU might have finally reached its penultimate chapter. The Parliament and the French President of the European Union have, after far too long a time, found an agreement on CO₂ emission limits for car manufacturers. Now it's just a matter of getting the European Commission to pass the agreement as a bill so it becomes law for the 27 country members.

So what's the final word? Automakers will have to sell an array of cars that produce an average of 130 g/km in 2015. However, this limit will be gradually implemented: 65 percent of their fleet should be compliant in 2012, 75 percent in 2013, 80 percent in 2014 and 100 percent in 2015.

What happens if they don't reach this limit? They will be fined, and this is the point that stirred more disagreement than any other, so it's the part that was softened. Between 2012 and 2018, automakers will be fined €5 for each first excess gram, €15 for the second, €25 for the third and €95 for the fourth and each gram afterwards. This figure will be then multiplied by the total number of cars sold by the manufacturer. Make sense? Take this example: if an automaker gets an average of 140 g/km from their fleet, this would add 5 + 15 + 25 + (95 x 7) euros for a fine of €710 per vehicle sold.

[Source: El Mundo]

The drama of implementing carbon dioxide emissions limits for European cars continues this week with the latest directional change. This time around, with the French holding the rotating presidency of the European Union, a new proposal has emerged that would see the limits phased in over a three-year period beginning in 2012. Originally, the plan was to have each manufacturer's fleet average no more than 130 g/km of C0₂ emissions by 2012. Under the latest proposal, only 60 percent of an automaker's fleet would have to meet that requirement. Only by 2015 would everything built have to come down to that level. Beyond that, further emissions reductions to 95-110 g/km are proposed by the end of the decade. So far there isn't any indication that any of this will become law. Both the European Parliament and member states have to pass the rules for them to take effect.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Support for crop-based biofuels is falling in many parts of the world, including Europe. When the European Commission proposed that 10 percent of road transport fuel should come from renewable sources by 2020 it didn't specify what types of renewable energy should be used. The European Parliament's industry committee has now endorsed the 10 percent requirement. However, in a nod to environmentalists, the committee has decided that at least 40 percent of that should be provided by hydrogen or electricity from renewable sources or next-generation biofuels. Environmentalists still aren't entirely pleased but the move to limit use of crop-based fuels is seen as a positive development. The committee's decision will be used as the basis for negotiations among member states of the EU before passage of final regulations, likely some time in 2009.

[Source: New Scientist Tech]

Just the other day, we heard the European Union was thinking of lowering its CO₂ standards for automakers. It appears that the rumors were true, as the European Parliament has indeed voted to amend the proposed standards. The details are pretty difficult to follow, as this particular issue has been going on for an excruciatingly long time, so bear with us here. The gist is that the Commission will grant automakers a longer period of time to meet the now-not-as-clean target of 130g/km of carbon emissions along with reducing the amount that automakers would be fined for missing that target. To go along with this, credits would be earned for models which produce fewer than 70g/km. That makes some sense, as it may get automakers to push for that low figure. The problem is that up to five other vehicles could be offset by that one low emitter. That's pretty bad math. Expect these issues to be voted on in the near future.

[Source: Channel 4]

It looks like European automakers are winning their battle against the proposed European Union limits on automotive CO₂ emissions. While the European Commission had proposed a limit of 120 g/km for the vehicle fleet by 2012, manufacturers where claiming the limit was too aggressive. The members of parliament apparently agreed, with the Industry and Energy Committee voting 35-21 to slow things down. Instead of having the entire fleet meet the requirement, only 60 percent of vehicles will have to pass the new threshold in 2012. Over the next several years, through 2015, the rest of the vehicles will meet the standard as well. Extremely low emission vehicles with less than 50 g/km of CO₂ will also be given extra credit counting as 1.5 vehicles in the sales weighted averaging. All electric vehicles will count as three cars until 2015. In a further move sure to make environmentalists apoplectic, the fines for exceeding the limits were slashed from the EC's proposed €95 per gram of CO₂ over the limit to €40 per gram.

[Source: Euractiv.com]

The negotiations regarding proposed European Union CO₂ emissions regulations are ongoing, it seems. Even after German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicholas Sarkozy agreed to push the starting date from the year 2012 to the year 2015, Fiat's CEO, Sergio Marchionne is still unhappy.

The latest issue that Fiat has with the proposals is related to the sliding-scale that automakers would be subjected to. Companies which make larger vehicles would not be required to meet the same regulations as those which produce smaller, more efficient vehicles. Marchionne says that Fiat will hit the proposed 130 gram per kilometer mark that has been thrown about, but would be unable to chop another eight grams from its cars, as the latest proposals would require. If those standards went into effect, Fiat would be charged penalties despite offering the lowest carbon emissions of all automakers in the European Union, which does seem a bit backwards. Still, the company is already hitting that standard, so some reduction may not be too much to ask. As always, we expect these protracted negotiations to continue on well into the future.

[Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req'd]

My, how the tables have turned. First, it was Germany that was in opposition to stringent emissions standards in the European Union which would have regulated the amount of carbon dioxide a vehicle can emit, beginning in 2012. German automakers tend to make large, luxurious vehicles with big, powerful engines. France, though, did not want to see changes made to the regulations, as its automakers already were close to meeting the proposals and thought it would be unfair to make concessions just for German brands. So, the two countries had a little meeting and came to some sort of agreement which would not go into effect until 2015.

Now, it's Italy that is in opposition to the French and German deal, as Italian automakers also offer rather efficient vehicles. Italian environment minister Stefania Prestigiacomo calls the new proposal unacceptable and feels that it would put the Italian companies at a disadvantage to its competition. We wonder what the final regulations may look like once every country has had its say in what should be done.

[Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req'd]

It has been said numerous times that German automakers are upset with European proposals which would limit CO₂ output to around 120 grams per kilometer. Perhaps we shouldn't be lumping Volkswagen or its subsidiaries into that category. Martin Winterkorn, CEO of VW, has admitted that the VW brands, including luxury carmaker Audi, can achieve those low carbon standards. In fact, Winterkorn believes that the standards are achievable today, not by 2015 as proposals would require. Technologies which would allow the low carbon output are already being used. Direct injection and turbocharging are quickly becoming a staple of automakers like Volkswagen and Audi since those technologies allow the production of more power and the reduction of fuel consumption.

Another interesting tidbit from Winterkorn is that he believes that plug-in electric vehicles will become the fuel-saving technology of choice in the coming years. As you may be aware, Germany gets the vast majority of its power from coal, which is an extremely dirty process. For this reason, the VeeDub leader suggests that the country take a look at nuclear for its power needs.

[Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req'd.]