Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Implementing the Community Strategy to Reduce CO2 Emissions from Cars - Second annual Report on the effectiveness of the strategy (Reporting year 2000) [SEC(2001) 1722]
Date: 2001-11-08
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: energy saving, greenhouse gas, motor car, motor vehicle industry, non-polluting vehicle, pollution control measures

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 08.11.2001
COM(2001) 643 final

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL
AND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

Implementing the Community Strategy to Reduce CO2 Emissions from Cars
Second annual report on the effectiveness of the strategy
(Reporting year 2000)

[SEC(2001) 1722]

   
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL
AND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

Implementing the Community Strategy to Reduce CO2 Emissions from Cars
Second annual report on the effectiveness of the strategy
(Reporting year 2000)

I.

INTRODUCTION

The  Community’s  strategy  to  reduce  CO2  emissions  from  passenger  cars  and  improve  fuel
economy1 was endorsed by the Council in 19962. It aims to achieve an average specific CO2
emission figure for new passenger cars of 120 gCO2/km by 2005, and 2010 at the latest. The
starting point for the monitoring of the strategy is 1995.

The strategy is based on three main pillars:

1.

2.

3.

Commitments  made  by  the  automobile  industry  on  fuel  economy  improvements,
aiming at achieving an average specific CO2 emission figure for new passenger cars
of 140 gCO2/km by 2008/93.

Fuel-economy labelling of cars4 which aims to ensure that information relating to the
fuel economy and CO2 emissions of new passenger cars offered for sale or lease in
the Community is made available to consumers in order to enable them to make an
informed choice.

The  promotion  of  car  fuel  efficiency  by  fiscal  measures.  In  this  respect  the
Environment Council in October 19995 reiterated the need to study the possibility of
establishing a reference framework for fiscal incentives.

Research activities supplement these pillars.

The  Council  invited  the  Commission  to  report  about  the  effectiveness  of  the  strategy
regularly6.  In  order  to  establish  detailed  and  fully  transparent  monitoring  the  Commission
submits  reports  on  an  annual  basis,  meeting  at  the  same  time  related  reporting  requests
expressed by Council7. The European Parliament shall also be informed.

This first report8 for the reporting period 1995 to 1999 mainly covered the progress made with
regard to the commitments of the automobile industry. This second report also addresses the
other parts of the strategy in more  detail, including  the  requirements  laid down in Directive

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

COM (95) 689 final
Council conclusions of 25.6.1996
In  addition  the  associations  will  evaluate  in  2003/4  the  potential  for  additional  fuel-efficiency
improvements with the view to moving further towards the objective of 120 gCO2/km by 2012
Directive  1999/94/EC  relating  to  the  availability  of  consumer  information  on  fuel  economy  and  CO2
emissions in respect of the marketing of new passenger cars
Council conclusions of 06.10.1999
Council conclusion of 25.06.1996
Council conclusions of 06.10.1998 and 06.10.1999
COM(2000)615 final of 04.10.2000

2

                                                
1999/94/EC  and  Decision  1753/2000/EC9,  in  particular  in  response  to  the  reporting
requirements laid down in Article 9 of the Decision.

The  Commission  believes  that  consolidated  reporting  will  allow  all  interested  parties  to
follow the implementation of the Community strategy in the most efficient way10.

II.

PROGRESS  MADE  WITH  REGARD  TO  THE  COMMITMENTS  OF  THE  AUTOMOBILE
INDUSTRY

Commitments  have  been  made  by  the  European  (European  Automobile  Manufacturers
Association  –  ACEA11)12,  the  Japanese  (Japan  Automobile  Manufacturers  Association  -
JAMA13)  and  Korean  (Korea  Automobile  Manufacturers  Association  -  KAMA14)  automobile
industries15.  The  Commission  acknowledged  the  undertakings  given  in  the  commitments16.
All three commitments constitute equivalent efforts with the following main features:

1.

2.

The  CO2  emission  objective:  All  commitments  contain  the  same  quantified  CO2
emission  objective  for  the  specific  average  of  new  passenger  cars  sold  in  the
European Union, i.e. 140 gCO2/km (to be achieved by 2009 by JAMA and KAMA
and by 2008 by ACEA).

Means of achievement: ACEA, JAMA and KAMA commit themselves to achieving
the CO2 target mainly by technological developments and related market changes.

In addition “estimated target ranges” for the average new car CO2 emissions are provided for
2003/200417.

Moreover ACEA and JAMA committed themselves to introduce in the EU market, not later
than 2000, models emitting 120 gCO2/km or less; KAMA will do so as soon as possible.

The commitments are subject to a thorough, transparent and fair monitoring scheme. For this
purpose  “Joint  Reports”  of  the  Commission  and  each  individual  association  are  drafted
yearly.  They  are  agreed  between 
the  Commission’s
Communication  to  Council  and  European  Parliament  (see  Annexes).  The  associations
themselves have until now provided the underlying data. The associations’  data sources can
be considered as very reliable,  and have  been  used  because the  official EU  CO2 monitoring

the  parties,  and  attached 

to 

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

found  on 

the  web  site:

Decision  1753/2000/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  establishing  a  scheme  to
monitor the average specific emissions of CO2 from new passenger cars
Information  concerning 
the  Community  strategy  can  also  be 
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/co2/co2_home.htm
European car  manufacturers  in  ACEA:  BMW  AG,  DaimlerChrysler  AG,  Fiat  S.p.A.,  Ford  of  Europe
Inc.,  General  Motors  Europe  AG,  Dr.  Ing.  H.c.F.  Porsche  AG,  PSA  Peugeot  Citroën,  Renault  SA,
Volkswagen AG, AB Volvo
COM (98) 495 final
Japanese car manufacturers in JAMA: Daihatsu, Fuji Heavy Industries (Subaru), Honda, Isuzu, Mazda,
Nissan, Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Toyota
Korean car manufacturers in KAMA: Daewoo Motor Co. Ltd., Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors
Corporation
COM (99) 446 final
Recommendations 1999/125/EC; 2000/303/Ecand 2000/304/EC
For ACEA 165 – 170 gCO2/km in 2003; for JAMA 165 – 175 gCO2 /km in 2003; for KAMA 165 – 170
gCO2/km in 2004. The intermediate target ranges are indicative and do not constitute a commitment of
any sort.

3

                                                
system  will  not  become  operational  until  2001/2.  Once  available  this  system  will  allow
official emissions data to be used18.

The main findings for the reporting period 1995 to 2000 are:

(cid:1)  All associations reduced the average specific CO2 emissions of their cars sold on the EU
market further in the year 2000. ACEA and JAMA achieved in 2000 the highest reduction
rates seen so far: ACEA achieved a reduction of 2.9%, JAMA of 2.4%. KAMA achieved a
reduction  of  1.5  %.  The  fuel  efficiency  improvements  for  diesel  passenger  cars  are
significantly  larger  than  for  gasoline  vehicles  (see  Table  1).  For  JAMA  and  KAMA  the
average  diesel  CO2  emission  remain  considerably  higher  than  for  gasoline  because  these
engines are mainly used in heavier vehicles.

ACEA

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000 (3)

Change: 1995-2000 (%)

CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km)

Gasoline
Diesel
All fuels (1)

188
176
185

186
174
183

183
172
180

182
167
178

180
161
174

177
157
169

-5.9%
-10.8%
-8.6%

JAMA

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000 (3)

Change: 1995-2000 (%)

CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km)

Gasoline
Diesel
All fuels (1)

191
239
196

187
238
193

184
222
188

184
221
189

181
221
187

177
213
183

-7.3%
-10.9%
-6.6%

KAMA

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000 (3)

Change: 1995-2000 (%)

CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km)

Gasoline
Diesel
All fuels (1)

195
309
197

197
274
199

201
246
203

198
248
202

189
253
194

185
245
191

-5.1%
-20.7%
-3.0%

EU-15 (2)

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000 (3)

Change: 1995-2000 (%)

CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km) CO2 (g/km)

186
178
184

189
179
186

184
175
182

Gasoline
Diesel
All fuels (1)
(1) Gasoline and diesel-fuelled vehicles only, other fuels and statistically not identified vehicles are not expected to affect these averages
significantly.
(2) New passenger cars put on the EU market by manufacturers not covered by the Commitment would not influence the  EU average
significantly.
(3)The  figures are  not  corrected  for the  change  in  the  change in driving  cycle being  introduced  over  the  period  2000  to  2002  for  M1
vehicles. Based on a study of TNO the Commission service estimates that the test cycle change would lower  the  average  by 0.7%; this
would correspond to 1,2 gCO2/km for the EU-15, all fuels ,if all passenger cars were tested according to the new procedure.

-5.8%
-8.9%
-7.5%

182
171
180

180
165
176

178
163
172

Table 1: Average specific CO2 emissions of new passenger cars per fuel type, for each
association and the European Union

(cid:1)  ACEA  had  by  the  year  2000  already  achieved  the  upper  limit  of  the  2003  intermediate
target  range  of  165  to  170  gCO2/km.  On  an  EU-wide  basis,  ACEA  reduced  the  average
CO2 emissions of its new car fleet to 169 gCO2/km in 2000, from 174 gCO2/km in 1999,
and 185 gCO2/km in 1995. Over the 1995-2000 period, ACEA has cut its new car average
CO2  emissions  by  8.6%,  with  an  increasing  downward  trend.  Since  1995  on  average
European manufacturers have reduced CO2 emissions by 1.7% a year 19.

18

19

Article  8  of  Decision  1753/2000/EC  requires  that  the  Community  monitoring  systems  from  the  year
2003 onwards shall serve as the basis for the voluntary obligations agreed between the Commission and
the automobile industry.
This value is a simple arithmetic average, and throughout the text simple arithmetic averages are used.

4

                                                
(cid:1)  Specific  CO2 emissions  (g/km)  from  JAMA  have  decreased  by  an  average  of  1.3%  each
year  and  fell  from  196  gCO2/km  in  1995  to  183  gCO2/km  in  2000,  achieving  a  6.6%
reduction compared to 1995. Over the full reporting period 1995 to 2000, average specific
emissions have shown a continuous downward trend.

(cid:1)  Over  the  whole  reporting  period,  1995  to  2000,  average  specific  CO2  emissions  of
passenger cars sold by KAMA have decreased only moderately from 197 gCO2/km to 191
gCO2/km. This represents a drop of about 3.0%20 over the full reporting period, equivalent
to a 0.6% reduction per year.

The trends of the average specific CO2 emissions of new passenger cars for each association
and the European Union are shown in Figure 1.

Average Specific CO2 Emissions: Relative to 1995 Value

110%

105%

100%

95%

90%

85%

ACEA

KAMA

JAMA

EU15

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

Figure 1: Average specific CO2 emissions of new passenger cars relative to 1995, for each
association and the European Union

On the basis of the assumption that JAMA and KAMA will continue with the average annual
reduction  rate  in  the  same  range  as  in  the  year  2000,  JAMA  would  meet  the  intermediate
target  rate,  however,  KAMA  would  be  significantly  above.  The  Commission  hopes  that
KAMA will increase its efforts significantly and catch up in the coming years.

In the  year  2000 the average CO2 emissions  of  new  passenger  cars  decreased  as  well  in  all
Member States (see Figure 1). However, it should be noted that in some Member States the
specific CO2 emissions of individual associations increased, e.g., in Portugal (for KAMA and
JAMA),  in  Spain  (for  JAMA)  and  in  France  and  Germany  (for  KAMA).  This  does  not
conflict  in  any  way  with  the  commitments,  but  it  does  show  that  the  trends  for  individual
associations can differ significantly between Member States.

20

The drop from 197 gCO2/km to 191 gCO2/km gives a 3.2% reduction; the difference reflects rounding.

5

                                                
Weighted Average Specific CO2 Emissions

per Member State in  (g/km)

1995

2000

250

200

150

100

50

0

EU

A

B

DK

F

GER IRE

IT

LUX NL

P

SP

SW UK

Figure 2: Average Specific CO2 emissions of new passenger cars in the EU and in Member
States in 1995 and 2000 (weighted averages based on the data for diesel and gasoline vehicles
forwarded by the three associations)21

In  order  to  meet  the  final  target  of  140  gCO2/km  additional  efforts  are  necessary  and  the
annual reduction rate needs to be kept at a higher level (on average the reduction rate must be
about  2  %  per  year  throughout  the  entire  monitoring  period;  over  the  period  1995  to  2000
ACEA has achieved on average about 1,7 % per year, JAMA 1.3 % per year, and KAMA 0.6
% per year). However, it is predicted in the commitments that the associations would increase
their reductions CO2 rates over time.

All associations declared in their respective commitment that they will meet the final target by
mainly  technological  developments  and  market  changes  linked  to  these  developments.
Technological developments contributed to the reductions achieved so far (mainly through the
introduction  of  High  Speed  Direct  Injection  Diesel  (HDI)  Engines  and  to  a  lesser  extent
through the introduction of Gasoline Direct  Injection (GDI) Engines, Continuously Variable
Transmission and “Mini Cars”) as well as other measures and achievements.22

Moreover,  ACEA  and  –  to  a  lesser  extent  -  JAMA  introduced  passenger  cars  emitting  less
than  120  gCO2/km.  In  doing  so  both  associations  meet  an  important  element  of  their
commitments.  KAMA  has  still  not  introduced  such  models  on  the  market,  but  committed
itself to do so as early as possible. The consumer can currently choose between more than 22
such models.

All  associations  increased  the  diesel  share  of  their  fleets  within  the  reporting  period  (see
Table 2).

21

22

EU does not include data for Greece or Finland as insufficient data available.
The three “Joint Reports” do not address the question of measures taken in all details since this issue
will  be  studied  in  greater  detail  within  the  implementation  of  Decision  1753/2000/EC.  This  Decision
requires the Commission to report to Council and European Parliament by 2003/4 and 2008/9 about the
reductions achieved through technical and other measures.

6

                                                
ACEA
Gasoline share
Diesel share
Total number of PC

1995
73.4%
24.0%

1996
72.9%
24.3%

1997
73.1%
24.3%

1998
70.3%
27.0%

1999
65.8%
31.0%

2000
60.9%
35.8%

10,241,651 10,811,011 11,226,009 11,935,533 12,518,260 12,217,744

Change 1995-2000 (%) (2)
-12.5%
11.8%
19.3%

JAMA
Gasoline share
Diesel share
Total number of PC

1995
82.1%
9.5%
1,233,975

1996
82.1%
10.4%
1,342,144

1997
83.2%
11.2%
1,510,818

1998
81.6%
13.1%
1,666,816

1999
80.4%
14.9%
1,716,048

2000
80.8%
16.5%
1,667,987

Change 1995-2000 (%) (2)
-1.3%
6.9%
35.2%

KAMA
Gasoline share
Diesel share
Total number of PC

1995
87.9%
1.6%
169,060

1996
87.6%
1.8%
236,454

1997
89.2%
2.3%
275,453

1998
85.9%
6.1%
373,230

1999
81.9%
7.4%
463,724

2000
80.9%
8.3%
491,244

Change 1995-2000 (%) (2)
-7.0%
6.7%
190.6%

1995
74.5%
22.2%

1996
74.2%
22.4%

1997
74.6%
22.3%

EU-15 (1)
Gasoline share
Diesel share
Total number of PC (3) 11,644,686 12,389,609 13,012,280 13,975,579 14,698,032 14,376,975
 (1) New passenger cars put on the EU market by manufacturers that are not covered by the commitment do not effect the numbers
significantly.
(2) The change over the period 1995 to 2000 for gasoline and diesel driven cars represents the change in the absolute share of each fuel
type of total registrations. The change for total cars is the growth or drop in absolute new registrations. The change in total cars
represents the growth in the EU-15 new registrations over the period.
(3) Totals include statistically unidentified vehicles and vehicles using 'other fuel' types.

Change 1995-2000 (%) (2)
-10.6%
10.5%
23.5%

2000
63.9%
32.6%

1999
68.0%
28.4%

1998
72.1%
24.7%

Table 2: Trends in Fleet composition for each association and the EU

The  diesel  share  increase  was  predicted  for  the  short-term.  However  it  is  expected  that  this
trend will be  counteracted  over  the  longer  term  through  the  introduction  of  Gasoline  Direct
Injection  technology.  Nevertheless  the  trend  of  an  increasing  number  of  newly  registered
diesel vehicles might raise concern regarding the emissions of diesel particulates.23

With regard to the  assumptions underlying the commitments the associations drew attention
to issues relating to fiscal and other regulatory measures.

(cid:1)  With regard to fiscal measures one association expressed its concern about tax measures in
a number of countries (e.g. Netherlands, Sweden, UK) that - in its view - penalise diesel
cars.

23

In  December  2000  the  Council  invited  the  Commission  “….make  continued  efforts  to  significantly
reduce  nano-particulate  emissions,  and  in  particular  devise  a  new  measuring  procedure  for  private
cars, light duty vehicles and heavy duty vehicles taking into account the results of recent studies into the
health effects of nano-particulate emissions...”. Council conclusion of 18/19.12.2000

7

                                                
(cid:1)  The  associations  stress  the  issue  of  the  availability  of  enabling  fuels.  In  this  respect  it  is
known that the  car  industry  attributes  great  importance  to  the  availability  of  low  sulphur
fuel24. The Commission forwarded a proposal of an amendment to Directive 98/70 in order
to reduce the sulphur content in fuels25.

(cid:1)  The  car  industry  continues  to  stress  that  the  End-of-Life  Vehicle  (ELV)  Directive26  will
have adverse implications for the fuel efficiency of cars, as in its opinion, it may limit the
use  of  certain  light  materials  and  technologies.  The  Commission  does  not  expect
repercussions  from  the  ELV  Directive  on  the  CO2  commitment  nor  significant  adverse
repercussions on the industry’s economic situation.

(cid:1)  KAMA continues to draw special attention to the ongoing restructuring process, associated
budget  cuts  and  the  reduction  of  technical  and  scientific  staff  that  has  negative
repercussions on KAMA’s ability to develop the necessary new CO2 efficient technologies
and  to  introduce  new  models  on  the  EU  market.  In  particular,  KAMA  expressed  great
concern over the long delayed restructuring of some of KAMA’s member companies and
its  possible  impact  on  the  overall  CO2  emission  reduction.  However,  the  economic
prospects  of the Korean car  industry  are now more  promising  as  the  Korean  economy  is
recovering  rapidly  and  the  restructuring  of  the  industry  is  likely  to  facilitate  an
enhancement  of  its  competitiveness.  KAMA  also  stresses  that  this  is  only  the  first  full
reporting  period  following  their  commitment  and  therefore  significant  results  will  come
later,  especially  as  from  a  technological  perspective  they  were  some  distance  behind
ACEA and JAMA to start with.

III.

IMPLEMENTATION OF DECISION 1753/2000/EC

The so-called “Monitoring” Decision came into force on 30 August 2000. The data collected
under this Decision will be used by the Commission service in order to monitor the voluntary
obligations to reduce emissions of CO2 from motor vehicles agreed between the Commission
and the automobile industry.

According to Article 5 of the Decision, Member States are required to designate a competent
authority for the collection and communication of the monitoring information. According to
Article  6  of  the  Decision,  Member  States  have  to  report  to  the  Commission  on  how  they

24

25

26

The  associations  made  their  commitments  on  the  basis  of  the  fuel  quality  requirements  laid  down  in
Directive 98/70/EEC, although they expect that better fuel qualities might be available in the market in
the future. In this respect the associations expected that some gasoline (e.g. Super-Plus 98 octane) and
some diesel plus  with a  maximum  sulphur content of 30 ppm are provided in 2000 on  the  whole  EU
market in a sufficient volume and geographical cover; in 2005 full availability of fuels on the whole EU
market  which  satisfy  the  following:  gasoline  with  a  maximum  sulphur  content  of  30  ppm  and  of  a
maximum aromatic content of 30% and diesel with a maximum sulphur content of 30 ppm and a cetane
number of minimum 58.
See  COM(2001)  241  final  of  11.5.2001.  With  regard  to  the  repercussions  of  this  proposal  on  the
commitments the Commission explained that “…The impact of these fuels in relation to the attainment
of the 140 gCO2 /km target will, therefore, be taken account of in the joint monitoring mechanism. The
availability  of  zero  sulphur  fuels  resulting  from  this  Directive,  will  also  provide  a  basis  for  the
Commission  to  explore  with  the  automobile  manufacturers  additional  commitments  aimed  at  the
attainment of the Community’s target of 120 gCO2/km for  the  average  CO2  emissions  of  the  new  car
fleet when the current environmental commitments with the automobile manufacturers are reviewed in
2003...”.
Directive 2000/53/EC

8

                                                
intend to implement the provisions of this Decision. Both steps had to be completed before 2
March 2001. Moreover, according to Article 4 of the Decision, Member States shall transmit
data on specific CO2 emissions of new passenger cars no later than 1 July 2001.

By the end of September 2001 eight Member States had met the requirement of Articles 5 and
(in  part)  Article  6,  and  seven  Member  States  had  met  the  requirement  of  Article  4.  The
following  Member  States  had  not  delivered  data:  Austria,  Belgium,  Greece,  Ireland,
Luxembourg,  Portugal,  Spain  and  Sweden.  The  Commission  considers  to  open  official
infringement procedures in October 2001. As a result of the non-availability of data and the
fact that some Member States have delivered data for the period after August 2000 and not for
the  full  calendar  year,  the  data  could  not  be  used  for  the  year  2000  monitoring.  The
Commission launched a study in order to improve the data transfer and to identify potential
data inconsistency problems.

IV.

IMPLEMENTATION OF DIRECTIVE 1999/94/EC

The  so-called  “Labelling”  Directive  was  adopted  on  13  December  1999  and  the
implementation  by  Member  States  was  required  by  18  January  2001.  As  of  the  end  of
September 2001, seven Member States have informed the Commission about the transposition
of the Directive into national legislation. The  following Member  States have not transposed
the  Directive  yet:  Belgium,  France,  Germany,  Greece,  Italy,  Portugal,  Spain  and  United
Kingdom. The Commission has sent “Reasoned Opinions” to most of these Member States.

In  August  2001  the  Commission  published  its  Decision  concerning  the  reporting  format
mentioned  in  Article  9.  The  format  was  jointly  worked  out  with  Member  States  in  the
Committee established under Article 10 of the Directive27.

The Commission service had to give up its intention to establish its own EU Internet site on
fuel consumption and CO2 emissions from passenger cars marketed within the EU. Only car
manufacturers can deliver reliable and consistent data for such an Internet site. However, most
of  them  preferred  to  co-operate  at  a  national  level  and  did  not  see  any  added  value  in  a
Community Internet site. The Commission now supports the establishment of such sites in a
number  of  countries  within  the  CLASE  project28.  Some  Member  States  have  already
established such a site. Links to  these sites  are available through the Commission’s  Internet
sites on the implementation of the CO2 and cars strategy29.

In response to one of the obligations mentioned in Article 9 of the Directive, in July 2001 the
Commission  launched  a  study  on  the  “Establishment  of  Recommendations  to  Enable  the
Application of the Principles of the Provisions on Promotional Literature to other Media and
Material”.  Based  on  the  results  of  this  study  the  Commission  intends  to  put  forward  a
proposal to the Committee established under Article 10.

27

28

29

Commission Decision C2001/1883 of 10.8.2001
The  “Car  Labelling  Saves  Energy”  project  is  part  of  the  “Ecodriving,  Labelling,  Benchmarking  “
project run by DG Transport and Energy. The CLAES project aims at setting-up informative databases,
running promotion campaigns and evaluating the impact of car labelling measures.
See: http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/co2/co2_home.htm

9

                                                
V.

WORK ON FISCAL MEASURES

The  Commission  has  started  work  on  fiscal  framework  measures  for  new  passenger  cars,
focusing  on  registration  and  circulation  taxes.  For  this  purpose  it  established  an  “Expert
Group on Fiscal Framework Measures”. The Expert Group’s overall objective is to assist the
Commission  in  its  work  on  fiscal  framework  measures  to  reduce  CO2  emissions  from
passenger cars within a co-operative effort of all relevant stakeholders such as representatives
of  the  Commission,  the  Member  States,  industry  and  the  NGO  community.  Currently  the
Commission - in co-operation with Member States - is carrying out the necessary background
studies.  Preliminary  results  indicate  that  additional  significant  CO2  reduction  might  be
achieved  with  differentiated  vehicle  taxes  that  favour  the  purchase  and  operation  of  fuel
efficient  passenger  cars.  The  final  results  of  this  work  will  be  incorporated  into  the
Commission’s Communication on vehicle taxation scheduled for February 2002.

It  should  be  noted  that  a  number  of  Member  States  modified  the  national  vehicle  taxation
system  between  1995  and  the  year  2000  with  the  objective  of  incorporating  specific  fuel-
efficiency  relevant  elements  (e.g.,  Austria  and  the  United  Kingdom)  while  some  others
provide special fiscal incentives for either very fuel efficient or electric/hybrid vehicles (e.g.,
Denmark,  Germany,  Netherlands,  Sweden,  Ireland  and  Luxembourg).  The  repercussions  of
changes of the national taxation systems for passenger cars will be taken into account in the
“Major 2003 Review”30.

VI.

a)

b)

OTHER RELATED MEASURES

In the field of CO2 emission values for alternatives fuels (other than  LPG  and NG,
which  are  already  included  in  the  type  approval  system),  the  Commission  plans  to
draft  an  amendment  to  Directive  80/1268/EEC  to  include  ethanol-fuelled  vehicles.
Additionally, an ad hoc group concerned with regulatory issues with regard to hybrid
vehicles is currently being established at the UN-ECE level.

The  Commission  service  is  preparing  a  proposal  on  the  extension  of  the  scope  of
Directive  80/1268/EEC  to  light  commercial  vehicles  (category  N1)31,  which  is
expected to be adopted by the Commission in September 2001. In August 2001 the
Commission has launched a call for tender concerning a study on the “ Preparation of
measures  to  reduce  CO2  emissions  from  N1  vehicles“  in  order  to  study  the
possibilities of CO2 emission reduction steps for this vehicle category.

VII.

CONCLUSIONS

The  implementation  of  the  Community’s  strategy  to  reduce  CO2  emissions  from  passenger
cars and improve fuel economy shows generally good progress. The commitments of the car
industry are in the implementation phase. The attached “Joint Reports” show that the ACEA
and  JAMA  have  made  significant  progress.  In  fact  ACEA  had  already  achieved  the  upper
limit  of  the  2003  indicative  intermediate  target  range  by  the  year  2000.  On  the  other  hand,
KAMA  must  increase  its  efforts  significantly.  For  its  part,  KAMA  has  reported  that  it  will
step up its efforts and that it is confident about meeting its commitment.

30

31

2004 for KAMA
See COM(2001) …

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In  order  to  meet  the  final  target  of  140  gCO2/km  all  three  associations  have  to  maintain  or
increase their efforts. Based on the attached reports the Commission has no particular reason
to  believe  that  any  of  the  associations  would  not  live  up  to  its  commitment,  although  the
situation with KAMA must be tightly monitored.

To  achieve  the  Community  strategy  target  of  120  gCO2/km  it  is  important  that  the
Community continues its work on fiscal measures. Commission’s Communication on vehicle
taxation scheduled for February 2002 will  present, inter  alia,  options for the  design of  fuel-
efficiency related vehicle taxation schemes.

A number of Member States are lagging behind schedule with regard to the implementation of
Directive 1999/94 and Decision 1753/2000. It is imperative that Member States accelerate the
implementation  of  these  legal  provisions  in  order  to  avoid  negative  repercussions  on  the
implementation of the strategy and its monitoring.

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ANNEX (SEC(2001) 1722)

1)

2)

3)

Monitoring  of  ACEA's  Commitment  on  CO2  Emission  Reduction  from  Passenger
Cars  (2000),  Joint  Report  of  the  European  Automobile  Manufacturers  Association
and the Commission Services, Final version of 13.07.2001

Monitoring  of  JAMA's  Commitment  on  CO2  Emission  Reduction  from  Passenger
Cars  (2000),  Joint  Report  of  the  Japan  Automobile  Manufacturers  Association  and
the Commission Services, Final version of 13.07.2001

Monitoring  of  KAMA's  Commitment  on  CO2  Emission  Reduction  from  Passenger
Cars (2000), Joint Report  of  the  Korea  Automobile  Manufacturers  Association  and
the Commission Services, Final version of 13.07.2001

The annexes are only available in English.

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