“With targets in place, there will be a massive push to sell electric cars this year,” says Chris Heron, Secretary-General of Avere, now rebranded into E-Mobility Europe
In a significant move for the electric vehicle (EV) industry, Avere, Europe’s leading e-mobility association, has officially rebranded itself as E-Mobility Europe. The new identity was unveiled on Monday during a launch event at Autoworld in Brussels.
Chris Heron, Secretary General of E-Mobility Europe, emphasized the importance of 2025 for Europe’s EV transition. “This year is decisive for Europe’s electric vehicle journey, and we want to be at the forefront of the political discussions ahead,” he stated.
Heron highlighted the exciting and challenging nature of Europe’s e-mobility journey and expressed pride in starting this new chapter with members and partners.
Stick to the rules
The European industry group representing automakers, battery makers, and charging firms said on Monday that the EU should stick to 2025 CO2 emission rules and roll out incentives to buy EVs rather than waive fines for automakers that miss targets.
E-Mobility Europe said new research from British firm New Automotive shows that the 2025 emission rules for cars should lead to an almost 65% increase in sales of fully electric vehicles across the European Union this year. Without those rules in place, sales should increase 33%.
The group pointed out that a number of new EV models under €25,000 really hit the market this year, including the Renault R5, the Fiat Grand Panda, the Hyundai Inster, and the VW ID.2, to name just a few. Chris Heron told Reuters the EU could use money from tariffs levied on Chinese-made EVs or relief funds left over from the coronavirus pandemic to fund consumer incentives.
“With targets in place, there will be a massive push to sell electric cars this year,” Heron said. “If Europe’s governments get on board, realistically, we can end up with a year where fines don’t need to be issued.”
Under the EU’s 2025 CO2 emission targets, more than one-fifth of automakers’ sales need to be fully electric, but EVs only accounted for 13.6% of new car sales in 2024. Europe’s auto industry has estimated it could face €15 billion in fines for missing those targets and
has called for the European Commission to waive them.
Infrastructure crucial
E-Mobility Europe’s membership spans the EV ecosystem with many partners, including Tesla, Chinese battery maker CATL, and Dutch fast-charging company Fastned.
Fastned CEO Michiel Langezaal estimated that charging companies have invested 10 billion euros in infrastructure so far, and investors will become reluctant to provide funding if the EU backs off its goals.
“It’s incredibly important to keep the targets in place to ensure the entire industry transitions; otherwise, that infrastructure cannot be built up,” Langezaal said.
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