France targets two-thirds of EV sales by 2030 in electrification push

The French government has set a target for two-thirds of new passenger car sales to be electric by 2030, as part of a broader electrification strategy aimed at reducing dependence on imported oil and strengthening industrial capacity.

The transport measures form a central pillar of the plan, with the government linking electrification directly to exposure to global fuel price shocks. It highlighted the cost differential between electric and conventional vehicles, stating that driving 100 kilometres costs around €2 to €3 in an electric vehicle, compared to around €11 for diesel.

To support uptake, the government will relaunch its social leasing scheme from June, making at least 50,000 additional electric vehicles available to lower-income households through subsidised monthly payments. A separate scheme targeting high mileage workers, including healthcare staff, carers and tradespeople, will provide support for a further 50,000 vehicles from 2026.

On the supply side, the government set out industrial targets to scale domestic electric vehicle production, with output expected to reach 400,000 vehicles per year in the near term and one million by 2030. The strategy aims to avoid replacing dependence on imported fossil fuels with reliance on imported vehicles, positioning electrification as both an energy and industrial policy tool.

Support measures will also extend beyond passenger cars. For the first time, dedicated schemes will target light commercial vehicles and heavy-duty trucks, with subsidies of up to €100,000 per vehicle. The government also indicated that further measures will be introduced to support electrification across professional fleets and business use cases.

More broadly, the government framed transport electrification as a lever to reduce overall energy costs and improve competitiveness, while acknowledging that the transition must be supported through targeted measures rather than generalised subsidies.

Germany moves to restrict fuel price increases and release oil reserves

Germany’s federal government plans a package of measures to address rising fuel prices, including restricting petrol stations to a single daily price increase and releasing part of the country’s strategic oil reserves. The measures follow a roughly 30 percent rise in global oil prices linked to the Iran Middle East conflict and disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Under the proposal, petrol stations would only be allowed to increase prices once per day, at 12:00, while price reductions would remain permitted at any time. Authorities said prices currently change up to 22 times per day. Breaches could lead to fines of up to €100,000. The measure is intended to address the so-called “rocket and feather” effect identified by the Federal Cartel Office, where prices rise quickly but fall slowly.

The package also includes amendments to Germany’s competition law framework to strengthen oversight of fuel pricing. The Federal Cartel Office would be given enhanced powers to act against dominant companies where there are indications of excessive pricing, including shifting the burden to companies to justify increases and enabling faster intervention where structural distortions of competition are identified.

The government also intends to release part of Germany’s strategic reserves following a coordinated request by the International Energy Agency. Germany holds emergency stocks equivalent to around 90 days of supply, with approximately 2.6 million tonnes expected to be made available from total reserves of roughly 19.5 million tonnes. Officials said the move is intended to signal additional supply to global markets and ease price pressures while maintaining domestic supply security.

Industry calls for rapid overhaul of Combined Transport Directive

A joint industry position paper, signed by BusinessEurope, Cefic, Clecat, UIRR, and other stakeholders, calls for a restart of legislative work on the revision of the Combined Transport Directive, arguing that the current framework is outdated and misaligned with the realities of the Single Market and digital logistics.

The paper states that combined transport is central to achieving EU climate objectives, including reducing transport emissions, while also contributing to energy efficiency, reducing road congestion, and addressing driver shortages. However, it warns that uptake remains limited due to operational complexity, insufficient infrastructure and a lack of cost competitiveness compared to road-only freight.

Industry stakeholders argue that the existing directive relies on outdated definitions, paper-based enforcement and fragmented national incentives, resulting in legal uncertainty, inconsistent application across Member States and an uneven playing field between unimodal road transport and multimodal solutions. This is said to create administrative burdens, particularly for small and medium-sized operators, and to discourage cross-border operations.

The signatories call for a revised framework centred on legal clarity, harmonised application and digitalisation, including a clear and verifiable eligibility methodology for operators and authorities. They also emphasise the need for improved enforcement mechanisms and reduced administrative burdens through digital tools.

Further recommendations include faster implementation of national measures, coupled with regular assessment of their effectiveness, and the establishment of a framework that ensures legal certainty for cross-border supply chains in line with Single Market principles.

The paper concludes that a modernised Combined Transport Directive is necessary to improve industrial competitiveness, strengthen supply chain resilience and accelerate the shift towards multimodal freight transport across the EU.

ENVI briefing flags structural barriers to fossil fuel phase-out ahead of Colombia conference

A European Parliament briefing for the ENVI Committee said fossil fuel combustion accounted for 74.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2024, and warned that the transition away from fossil fuels continues to be constrained by structural macroeconomic and institutional “lock ins”. The paper said progress within the UNFCCC framework remains blocked, while initiatives outside it are largely limited to frontrunners, and EU-level action has so far delivered only limited results.

The briefing focuses on the First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, scheduled from the 24th to the 29th of April in Santa Marta, Colombia, co-hosted by Colombia and the Netherlands. The conference is intended to provide a “safe harbour” for state and non-state actors, with the aim of forming a “coalition of the willing”, establishing a science-led coordination process and producing a consolidated report on transition solutions.

Potential outcomes identified in the briefing include renewed political signalling through a second wave of signatories to the Belém Declaration, alongside a shift towards implementation via national and international roadmaps and accountability mechanisms. The paper also points to discussions on possible future legal instruments, including a fossil fuel treaty, and to the development of transparency tools such as an open source database covering fossil fuel production, including petrochemicals.

The briefing further highlights legal reform proposals, including coordination on the removal of barriers such as investor-state dispute settlement provisions and the development of domestic phase-out frameworks designed to withstand legal challenges. It also notes the intention to feed outcomes into the Global TAFF roadmap being developed by the Brazilian COP30 Presidency.

More broadly, the paper frames the initiative as part of a move towards “two-tier multilateralism”, where parallel cooperation processes complement the consensus-based UNFCCC approach. It concludes that such formats are becoming increasingly relevant for implementation, particularly in areas where agreement at the global level remains difficult.

Leaked ACEA paper calls for softer CO2 targets and extended flexibilities

A leaked position paper from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association sets out industry demands ahead of the Environment Council, calling for additional flexibilities in the review of EU CO2 standards for cars and vans and warning of exposure to “multi-billion euro” penalties if current trajectories are maintained.

The paper argues that battery electric vehicle uptake is progressing too slowly to meet compliance timelines, with uneven deployment across Member States. It says the EU passenger car BEV market would need to triple within four years to avoid fines, and proposes extending target averaging from three to five years, covering the period 2028 to 2032, to provide manufacturers with additional flexibility.

For vans, the paper describes the market as “precarious”, citing a contraction in overall sales and electrified vehicle penetration of just above 10 percent. It argues current targets are not achievable and calls for a 35 percent CO2 reduction target for 2030 and an 80 percent target for 2035, combined with extended averaging periods for both 2025 to 2029 and 2030 to 2034.

The paper also calls for adjustments to compliance mechanisms, including lowering the effective compliance threshold to 90 per cent and introducing more accessible compensation measures, notably for low-carbon materials and fuels. It proposes bringing forward these flexibilities rather than delaying implementation to 2035, and reintroducing a review clause in 2029 to reflect market and geopolitical developments.

In addition, the document calls for the creation of a specific carbon-neutral fuel vehicle category, to be treated as zero emission, where compliant with the Renewable Energy Directive. It also raises concerns about parallel regulatory files, including the Clean Corporate Vehicles initiative and Euro 7, warning that changes such as the planned utility factor adjustment could reduce the contribution of plug-in hybrids during the transition phase.

More broadly, the paper calls for a range of technical adjustments, including super credits for small and efficient battery electric vehicles, changes to zero and low emission vehicle benchmarks, and expanded flexibility mechanisms across both car and van segments. It also urges a rebalancing of demand-side measures to avoid distortions and ensure technology neutrality across zero and low-emission technologies.

Transport and Environment criticised the proposals, citing analysis of the leaked document which it said could lead to an additional €74 billion in EU oil imports between 2026 and 2035 compared to the current regulatory framework. The NGO argued that weakening the targets would delay the rollout of more affordable electric vehicles and increase dependence on imported fossil fuels at a time of high petrol prices.

T&E said the proposed five-year averaging and other flexibilities would allow manufacturers to sell significantly fewer battery electric vehicles, with BEV market share potentially remaining around current levels rather than reaching the levels required under existing legislation. It also warned that changes to plug-in hybrid accounting rules would prolong the role of higher-emitting technologies during the transition.

The organisation further argued that the proposed adjustments to the 2035 target and the introduction of credits for fuels and materials could reduce the share of zero-emission vehicles in new sales, and increase cumulative CO2 emissions from cars by up to 2.4 gigatonnes between 2026 and 2050. It called on EU co-legislators to maintain existing CO2 targets and strengthen demand-side measures, including through the Clean Corporate Vehicles proposal.

EU battery sector loses ground as cost gap with imports widens, report finds

The EU is losing competitiveness in battery production, with higher costs, supply chain gaps and reduced research leadership weakening its position against global competitors, according to a Clean Energy Technology Observatory report.

The analysis finds that EU produced batteries remain between 15 percent and 50 percent more expensive than imports, with the gap widening in 2024 as prices fell faster in the United States and China. High energy, labour and investment costs, alongside low utilisation rates of production assets, are identified as key structural constraints.

Across the value chain, the EU remains heavily dependent on external suppliers, particularly for raw and processed materials and manufacturing equipment. In 2024, more than 85 percent of battery imports originated from China. Current EU manufacturing capacity corresponds to around 21 percent of projected 2030 demand, indicating the scale of the gap to the 40 percent domestic supply objective set under the Net Zero Industry Act.

The report also finds that the EU is no longer leading in battery research and innovation, with China, South Korea and Japan dominating patenting activity across most technologies. The EU typically ranks third or fourth, with limited areas of relative strength.

Despite these challenges, the sector remains central to EU transport and energy policy. Batteries are identified as a key enabler of electric mobility and renewable energy integration, particularly for grid flexibility and stability as fossil fuel based generation is phased out.

The report points to continued technological development, including cost reductions and improvements in lithium ion technologies, alongside emerging chemistries such as solid state and sodium ion batteries, which are expected to reach wider commercial deployment within the next three to five years.

To improve competitiveness, the report highlights the need to increase domestic supply of raw materials, reduce production costs, accelerate permitting and simplify regulatory frameworks, develop a skilled workforce and strengthen demand for EU produced batteries. It also underlines the importance of improving links between research and industrial deployment.

Commission approves €3.7 billion Czech biomethane State aid scheme

The European Commission has approved a €3.7 billion Czech State aid scheme to support sustainable biomethane production under the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework. The measure will run until the 31st of December 2030 and support biomethane used in transport, heating and industry.

The scheme will support both newly built biomethane installations and the conversion of existing biogas plants. Aid will take the form of a two-way contract for difference providing a bonus per MWh of biomethane produced for 15 years, based on a strike price. Where market gas prices fall below the strike price, the State will pay the difference, while producers must repay when market prices exceed it. Beneficiaries will be selected through competitive tenders and production must comply with the Renewable Energy Directive. The measure is expected to benefit mainly small and medium sized farms.

The Commission said the scheme is expected to support installations with total output of around 350 million standard cubic metres of sustainable biomethane. It assessed the measure under Article 107(3)(c) TFEU and the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework, concluding the aid is necessary, appropriate and proportionate to support the transition to a net zero economy and facilitate development of relevant economic activities.