Motor Trader The award-winning and longest running UK magazine for car retailing professionals. Your first stop for News, Jobs and Reports for the motor industry.
The European parliament has set out a tough programme for car manufacturers by passing the EU new car CO2 legislation which sets emissions from new cars at 130g/km by 2015.
The legislation sets the targets in different stages for manufacturers – 65 per cent of new cars must average the 130g/km target by 2012, 75 per cent by 2013, 80 per cent by 2014 and 100 per cent by 2015.
Carmakers which exceed these targets will face considerable fines, calculated by each additional gram exceeded per car registered across Europe.
The legislation is part of the EU’s “20-20-20” climate package which obliges nations to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent by 2020 from 1990 levels, make 20 percent energy savings and bring the use of renewable energy sources up to 20 percent of the total.
SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt welcomed the news: “This legislation places an even greater premium on innovation, skills and training in order to meet these commitments. At a time of economic uncertainty, it underlines the importance of long-term investment in the sector.”