VDA President Hildegard Müller:
“We need all climate-friendly technologies to achieve the EU climate goals. Therefore it’s appropriate that the debate about the contribution of e-fuels is now being held again. The VDA has long advocated that renewable fuels such as e-fuels can also make a contribution to the defossilization of all road traffic especially in fueling the existing vehicle population. They are also an important supplement to the ramp-up of electromobility. Europe can only achieve its ambitious CO2 reduction targets on a course that allows for all potential solutions in a technology-open manner.
It’s the turn of the EU Commission – and not just since today. The Council compromise from the summer of last year provides for a clear recital that describes the approval of vehicles that can be proven to be fueled with e-fuels after 2035 outside of fleet regulations. This must now finally be spurred by the Commission with a concrete regulation proposal.
For its part, the federal government is called upon to speak up in Brussels with a strong and unified voice for all technologies that can contribute to the climate goals.
At the same time, there is no reason for any slow down in the electromobility ramp-up! I would like to stress that this is not an either/or issue – electromobility remains the central technology for achieving the climate goals in transport. The EU must therefore get much more involved here and finally create the conditions so that the ramp-up of e-mobility can pick up speed throughout the EU. In particular, the development of a comprehensive and reliable European charging and H2 tank infrastructure must finally be pushed ahead with determination. Such a network is currently a long way off. The AFIR proposal by the EU Commission is clearly too unambitious and needs to be adjusted urgently.”
SOURCE: VDA
