Zero emissions from cars are commendable, but not at any cost, says the European Court of Auditors

The EU has introduced measures that will mean a ban on the sale of cars with internal combustion engines from 2035. The aim is to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. To achieve this, the EU needs to reduce carbon emissions from internal combustion engine cars, use alternative fuels and promote massive market uptake of battery electric vehicles.

According to ECA reports from recent years, the first goal has not yet been achieved, the second – as evidenced by the use of biofuels, for example – is probably not realistic on a large scale, and the third risks burdening EU industry and consumers with significant costs.

“The Green Agreement cannot be implemented without limiting emissions from cars. However, we are forced to recognize that despite great ambitions and strict requirements, most conventional cars emit the same amount of CO2 emissions as 12 years ago,” said ECA representative Nikolaos Milionis.

“Since biofuels are not widely available, they cannot be a reliable and trustworthy alternative for our cars,” he added.

According to the ECA report, the amount of biomass produced in Europe is not sufficient to represent a serious alternative to traditional fossil fuels. But when biomass is mostly imported from third countries, this will jeopardize the goal of strategic autonomy in the field of energy. In addition, the ECA auditors concluded that biofuels are not yet economically competitive and that their benefits to the environment are overestimated.

The auditors also note that the European battery industry is lagging behind global competitors. Despite significant support from public funds, the cost of batteries produced in the EU is still much higher than planned. This has a negative impact on their competitiveness against the products of other global players and may also lead to the fact that electric cars from Europe will not be available for a large segment of the population.

Charging stations are also a problem in the EU. They are still few and far between. Around 70 percent of charging stations in the EU are located in France, Germany and the Netherlands. Traveling by electric vehicle in Europe is still far from problem-free, due, among other things, to the lack of harmonized payment systems.

According to the ECA, the road to zero emissions will still be long and winding. According to its auditors, the EU must take into account Europe’s industrial independence and the availability of electric vehicles for consumers when implementing the Green Deal. Urgent measures are needed to enable the European industry to produce electric cars at competitive prices, while at the same time ensuring the supply of raw materials and supporting the completion of charging infrastructure across the continent.