Proposal for a DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Directive 2000/25/EC as regards the provisions for tractors placed on the market under the flexibility scheme
Date: 2010-10-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: air quality, approximation of laws, motor vehicle, pollution control measures, technical regulations, tractor

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 27.10.2010 
COM(2010) 607 final 

2010/0301 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL  

amending Directive 2000/25/EC as regards the provisions for tractors placed on the 
market under the flexibility scheme 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

SEC(2010) 1252 
 SEC(2010) 1251 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Directive 2000/25/EC1 on action to be taken against the emission of gaseous and particulate 
pollutants  by  engines  intended  to  power  agricultural  and  forestry  tractors  and  amending 
Council  Directive  74/150/EEC  (hereafter  “the  Directive”)  regulates  the  maximum  exhaust 
emissions  of  carbon  monoxide  (CO),  hydrocarbons  (HC),  nitrogen  oxides  (NOx)  and 
particulate matter (PM) from diesel engines installed in agricultural and forestry tractors. This 
Directive has been aligned with the similar one for non-road mobile machinery (97/68/EC). 

The  Directive  foresees  emissions  limit  stages  of  increasing  stringency  with  corresponding 
compliance  dates.  Manufacturers  must  ensure  that  new  engines  comply  with  these  limits  in 
order that they can be placed on the market. 

On  the  basis  of  amending  Directive  2004/26/EC2,  Directive  2005/13/EC3  introduced  the 
currently applicable stage of emission limits for the majority of diesel engines referred to as 
Stage  III  A.  These  limits  will  be  replaced  by  the  more  stringent  Stage  III  B  limits 
progressively as of 1st January 2011 for new tractors sold. From 1st January 2010 onwards the 
type  approval  period  for  these  engines  started.  A  great  diversity  of  tractors  production  is 
affected. 

To  comply  with  Stage  III  B  limits,  current  engines  will  need  to  be  substantially  modified. 
Changes  to  the  configuration,  size  or  weight  of  engines  have  a  knock-on  effect  for  tractor 
manufacturers  who  will  have  to  adapt  completely  the  design  of  their  tractors  in  order  to 
accommodate  the  modified  engines.  This  process  can  only  start  once  the  engine  is  fully 
developed.  Technical  solutions  for  complying  III B  engines  are  not  in  general  yet  finalised. 
Thus, tractor manufacturers are not in a position to fully redesign the vehicle where the engine 
is  to  be  installed.  While  for  some  of  them,  the  Stage  III  B  emissions  requirements  will  not 
pose very significant problems, in other cases a Stage III B compliant engine is far from being 
finalised and substantial further research and technological development is needed to ensure 
that tractors can be placed on the market with III B compliant engines.  

Compliance  costs  for  manufacturers  to  cope  with  the  new  emission  limits  are  significant. 
These costs include for example research and development costs, equipment redesign costs, 
after treatment devices costs, documentation and labelling costs, etc. 

From  early  2009  onwards  most  of  the  EU  based  industry  producing  tractors  has  been 
unexpectedly and severely hit by the global financial and economic crisis. In general, sudden 
falls in sales caused a large decrease in income and available capital to finance the necessary 
technology  research  and  development  for  tractors  with  Stage  III  B  compliant  engines  in  all 
power categories and applications within the time limits in the Directive. 

Directives  2004/26/EC  and  2005/13/EC  also  introduced  the  so-called  flexibility  scheme  to 
facilitate  the  transition  between  the  different  emission  stages.  This  allows  the  tractor 
manufacturer to place on the market, during the period of one stage of exhaust emissions limit 

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OJ L173, 12.7.2000, p.1 
OJ L 225, 25.6.2004, p.3 
OJ L55, 1.3.2005, p.35 

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values, a limited number of tractors which are fitted with engines that still comply with the 
exhaust  emission  limits  of  the  previous  stage.  The  flexibility  scheme  allows  the  tractor 
manufacturer  to  place  on  the  market  either  (1)  for  each  engine  power  category  a  limited 
number of tractors not exceeding 20% of the tractor manufacturer's annual sales (calculated as 
the average sales in the EU of the latest 5 years) or (2) a fixed number of tractors as stipulated 
in  the  Directive.  This  second  option  is  intended  for  smaller  enterprises  producing  lower 
volumes of engines. 

The attached proposal addresses the situation that manufacturers face difficulties to get Stage 
III B compliant engines approved and place them on the market due to delays in the design of 
new engines and the unexpected financial crisis. It is proposed to modify the provisions of the 
flexibility scheme to mitigate the effects from the transition of emission Stages III A to III B 
by  extending  its  application  while  maintaining  the  entry  into  force  of  the  exhaust  emission 
limit Stage III B to preserve the objective of the Directive to reduce emissions of gaseous and 
particulate pollutants in the European Union. 

2. 

RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND 
IMPACT ASSESSMENTS 

Representatives  of  Member  States  and  industry  stakeholders  have  been  consulted  on  the 
proposal through the Group of Experts on Machinery Emissions under the Directive (GEME) 
and  through  the  Working  Group  on  Agricultural  Tractors  (WGAT).  In  addition  the 
Commission  carried  out  between  May  and  June  2009  an  in-depth  consultation  of  Member 
States  authorities  and  all  relevant  stakeholders,  i.e.  industry,  environmental  organisations, 
workers  associations.  The  proposal  takes  into  account  a  Technical  Review  of  the  Directive 
97/68/EC4 by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) which includes, inter alia, an evaluation of the 
need  to  amend  the  provisions  of  the  flexibility  scheme;  an  Impact  Assessment  study  by  an 
external consultant5 to assess the impacts of the proposed policy options as laid down in the 
draft Technical Review of JRC, and a complementary study on the impacts of the options of 
the  Technical  Review  of  JRC,  including  consequences  of  an  amendment  of  the  flexibility 
scheme for SMEs. 

3. 

LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

The aim of Directive 2000/25/EC, as well as this proposed amendment, is to contribute to the 
smooth functioning of the internal market for tractors while protecting human health and the 
environment. The legal basis is thus Article 114 of the Treaty. 

The proposal foresees the following amendments to Directive 2000/25/EC: 

An  increase  of  the  percentage  of  the  number  of  engines  placed  on  the  market  under  the 
flexibility  scheme  in  each  engine  category  from  20%  to  50%  of  the  tractor  manufacturer’s 
annual sales of equipment and an adaptation of the maximum number of engines that may be 
placed  on  the  market  under  the  flexibility  scheme  as  an  optional  alternative,  in  the  period 

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The  draft  final  report  of  the  Technical  Review  is  available  on  the  NRMM  web  page  at  the  Europa  website  : 
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/mechan_equipment/emissions/2007tecrew_dfr.pdf 
The  final  report  of  the  IA  study  by  ARCADIS  N.V.  is  available  on  the  NRMM  web  page  at  the  Europa  website: 
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/mechan_equipment/emissions/impactassessment/nrmm_iastudy_fnrep.pdf 

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between  emission  Stage  III  A  to  emission  Stage  III  B.  This  measure  will  expire  on  31 
December 2013. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATION 

The proposal has no implication for the Community budget. 

5. 

OPTIONAL ELEMENTS 

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2010/0301 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL  

amending Directive 2000/25/EC as regards the provisions for tractors placed on the 
market under the flexibility scheme 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 114 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission6, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee7, 

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions8, 

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

Directive 2000/25/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2000 
on  action  to  be  taken  against  the  emission  of  gaseous  and  particulate  pollutants  by 
engines  intended  to  power  agricultural  or  forestry  tractors  and  amending  Council 
Directive  74/150/EEC9  regulates  exhaust  emissions  from  engines  installed  in 
agricultural  and  forestry  tractors.  The  current  stage  of  emission  limits  applicable  for 
type approval of the majority of compression ignition engines is referred to as Stage 
III A. The directive provides that those limits will be replaced by the more stringent 
Stage III B limits, entering into force progressively as of 1st January 2011 with regard 
to the placing on the market and from 1st January 2010 as regards the type approval for 
those engines. Stage IV, providing for limit values more stringent than stage III B, will 
enter into force progressively as of 1st January 2013 as regards the type approval for 
those engines and as of 1st January 2014 with regard to the placing on the market. 

(2) 

The transition to Stage III B involves a step change in technology requiring significant 
implementation  costs  for  re-designing  the  engines  and  for  developing  advanced 
technical solutions. This transition stipulated by the legislator in 2005 coincides with 
the  economic  recession  in  the  sector  concerned  which  makes  it  difficult  for  the 

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OJ C […], […], p. […]. 
OJ C […], […], p. […]. 
OJ C […], […], p. […]. 
OJ L 173, 12.7.2000, p. 1.  

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industry to bear the implementation costs necessary in order to adapt to the new legal 
requirements.  

Directive 2000/25/EC provides for a flexibility scheme to allow tractor manufacturers 
to purchase, in the period between two emission stages, a limited quantity of engines 
that  do  not  comply  with  the  current  emission  limit  values,  but  are  approved  to  the 
nearest previous stage of emission limits. 

Since  2005,  Directive  2000/25/EC  foresees  in  Article  4(8)  the  evaluation  of  the 
possible need for additional flexibilities in relation to Stage III B and IV limit values. 
In order to provide a temporary relief to industry when moving to the next stage, it is 
necessary to adapt the conditions for applying the flexibility scheme.  

During the transition from Stage III A to Stage III B, the percentage of the number of 
engines  placed  on  the  market  under  the  flexibility  scheme  should  be  increased  from 
20% to 50% of the tractor manufacturer’s annual sales of tractors with engines in that 
category. The optional alternative that a maximum number of engines may be placed 
on the market under the flexibility scheme should be adapted accordingly. 

Directive 2000/25/EC should therefore be amended accordingly. 

The  measures  provided  in  this  Directive  reflect  a  temporary  difficulty  faced  by  the 
industry; as such, these measures shall be restricted to the transition from Stage III A 
to Stage III B and expire on 31 December 2013, 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: 

Directive 2000/25/EC is hereby amended as follows: 

Article 1 

1. 

In Article 3a, the following subparagraph is added: "The flexibility scheme, set 
out  in  sections  1.2.,  1.2.1.  and  1.2.2.  of  Annex  IV  shall  apply  only  for  the 
transition  from  Stage  III  A  to  Stage  III  B  and  shall  expire  on  31  December 
2013." 

2. 

Section 1 of Annex IV is replaced by the text in Annex I to this Directive. 

Article 2  

Transposition 

1. 

Member  States  shall  adopt  and  publish,  by  [twelve  months  after  the  publication  of 
the  Directive]  at  the  latest,  the  laws,  regulations  and  administrative  provisions 
necessary  to  comply  with  this  Directive.  They  shall  forthwith  communicate  to  the 
Commission the text of those provisions. 

They  shall  apply  those  provisions  from  [Day,  Month,  Year  =  following  day  of 
application date]. 

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When  Member  States  adopt  those  provisions,  they  shall  contain  a  reference  to  this 
Directive  or  be  accompanied  by  such  a  reference  on  the  occasion  of  their  official 
publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made. 

2. 

Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions 
of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive. 

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union. 

Article 3 

Article 4 

This Directive is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at […], […] 

For the European Parliament 
The President 
[…] 

For the Council 
The President 
[…] 

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Section 1 of Annex IV is replaced by the following:  

ANNEX I 

"1. 

ACTIONS BY THE ENGINE AND TRACTOR MANUFACTURERS  

1.1.  With  the  exception  of  the  transition  period  between  Stage  III  A  and  Stage  III  B,  a  tractor 
manufacturer who wishes to make use of the flexibility scheme shall request permission from 
his approval authority to place or to source from his engine suppliers, in the period between 
two emissions stages, the quantities of engines described in sections 1.1.1. and 1.1.2. that do 
not  comply  with  the  current  emission  limit  values,  but  are  approved  to  the  nearest  previous 
stage of emission limits. 

1.1.1.  The number of engines placed on the market under a flexibility scheme shall, in each engine 
category, not exceed 20 % of the tractor manufacturer’s annual sales of tractors with engines 
in  that  engine  category  (calculated  as  the  average  of  the  last  5  years  sales  on  the  Union 
market). Where a tractor manufacturer has marketed tractors in the Union for a period of less 
than five years the average will be calculated based on the actual period for which the tractor 
manufacturer has marketed tractors in the Union. 

1.1.2.  As an alternative option to section 1.1.1., the tractor manufacturer may seek permission for his 
engine  suppliers  to  place  on  the  market  a  fixed  number  of  engines  under  the  flexibility 
scheme. The number of engines in each engine category shall not exceed the following values:  

Engine Category 
(kW) 

Number of Engines 

19-37 

37-75 

75-130 

130-560 

200 

150 

100 

50 

1.2. 

During the transition period between Stage III A and Stage III B, a tractor manufacturer who 
wishes  to  make  use  of  the  flexibility  scheme,  shall  request  permission  from  his  approval 
authority to place or to source from his engine suppliers, in the period between two emissions 
stages, the quantities of engines described in sections 1.2.1. and 1.2.2. that do not comply with 
the current emission limit values, but are approved to the nearest previous stage of emission 
limits. 

1.2.1.  The number of engines placed on the market under a flexibility scheme shall, in each engine 
category, not exceed 50 % of the tractor manufacturer’s annual sales of tractors with engines 
in  that  engine  category  (calculated  as  the  average  of  the  last  5  years  sales  on  the  Union 
market). Where a tractor manufacturer has marketed tractors in the Union for a period of less 
than five years the average will be calculated based on the actual period for which the tractor 
manufacturer has marketed tractors in the Union. 

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1.2.2.  As an alternative option to section 1.2.1, the tractor manufacturer may seek permission for his 
engine  suppliers  to  place  on  the  market  a  fixed  number  of  engines  under  the  flexibility 
scheme. The number of engines in each engine category shall not exceed the following values:  

Engine Category 
(kW) 

Number of Engines 

37-56 

56-75 

75-130 

130-560 

200 

175 

250 

125 

1.3. 

The tractor manufacturer shall include in his application to an approval authority the following 
information: 

(a) a sample of the labels to be affixed to each tractor in which an engine placed on the market 
under  the  flexibility  scheme  will  be  installed.  The  labels  shall  bear  the  following  text: 
‘TRACTOR NO … (sequence of tractors) OF … (total number of tractors in respective 
power  band)  WITH  ENGINE  NO.  …  WITH  TYPE  APPROVAL  (Directive 
2000/25/EC) NO …’; and 

(b) a sample of the supplementary label to be affixed on the engine bearing the text referred to 

in section 2.2 of this Annex. 

The tractor manufacturer shall provide the approval authority with any information connected 
with  the  implementation  of  the  flexibility  scheme  that  the  approval  authority  may  request 
necessary to make a decision. 

The  tractor  manufacturer  shall  file  a  report  every  six  months  to  the  approval  authorities  of 
each Member State, where the tractor or engine is put on the market, on the implementation of 
the flexibility schemes he is using. The report shall include cumulative data on the number of 
engines  and  tractors  placed  on  the  market  under  the  flexibility  scheme,  engine  and  tractor 
serial numbers, and the Member States where the tractor has been entered into service. This 
procedure shall be continued as long as a flexibility scheme is still in progress.” 

1.4. 

1.5. 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR PROPOSALS HAVING A BUDGETARY 
IMPACT EXCLUSIVELY LIMITED TO THE REVENUE SIDE 

1. 

NAME OF THE PROPOSAL: 

Proposal  for  a  Directive  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  amending  Directive 
2000/25/EC  as  regards  the  provisions  for  tractors  placed  on  the  market  under  the  flexibility 
scheme  

2. 

BUDGET LINES: 

Chapter and Article: Not applicable 

Amount budgeted for the year concerned: 

3. 

FINANCIAL IMPACT  

⌧  Proposal has no financial implications 

4. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES 

Not applicable 

5. 

OTHER REMARKS 

None 

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