At last Friday’s highly anticipated meeting of European carmakers with the EU Commission, President Ursula von der Leyen didn’t give in to the pressure to question the 2035 phase-out date of CO2-emitting cars and vans.

Still, it was agreed to forward the formal review of the 2035 rules from 2026 to the end of 2025. In this, there might be some room for allowing plug-in hybrids or range-extended EVs,  or alternative ‘CO₂-neutral fuels’ to be permitted with combustion engines.

No hard commitments

However, these moved into the consultation lane rather than hard commitments. Friday’s meeting also allowed Von der Leyen to highlight her proposal, made in her annual speech to the European Parliament, to help manufacturers develop ‘affordable and small electric vehicles’.

Participants who met with Ms. von der Leyen included the new Managing Director of Renault, François Provost, John Elkann (Stellantis), Oliver Zipse (BMW), Christian Levin of Traton/Scania, and Ola Källenius (Mercedes-Benz), among others.

The latter, being the acting President of ACEA, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, and all present, endorsed in the days before in more or less explicit terms the carmakers’ lobby’s point of view, adding extra pressure at the IAA Munich auto show.

Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa, for instance, called on EU authorities to take more action to protect the European car industry against outside competition, particularly from upcoming Chinese rivals.

“The European targets on CO2 emissions are unrealistic,” claims Filosa. “Excessive regulations lead to higher costs, especially for smaller cars, making volumes collapse and endangering the future of the whole automotive industry,” he added.

Renault’s new boss, Provost, has not outright rejected the 2035 ban or zero-emission target, but was signalling that the challenge is not just policy deadlines but enabling conditions: affordability, supply chain, battery cost, and competition.

He urged regulators to focus more on lowering EV prices rather than adding more regulation or accelerating deadlines that may be difficult to meet.

BMW CEO Oliver Zipse, although best placed among European carmakers to reach EU emission requirements, always argued for a ‘technology-agnostic’ policy framework, one that doesn’t force a single technology path, especially to manage dependencies on supply chains (like battery raw materials).

Fitting rules to reality

“We agree with the Commission President that bold and fast action is required”, stated Ola Källenius, ACEA President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz, in a press release.

“No one has more at stake in the success of zero-emission mobility than Europe’s automakers. A thriving Europe needs us, and we need a thriving Europe.”

“Most urgently, concrete steps are needed to make the CO2 policy framework for cars and vans fit for reality. “We are in this open and constructive dialogue to find a better way to green”, said Källenius.

There was some concrete practical outcome of the meeting, nevertheless. He added in the ACEA press release that in the margins of the dialogue, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Commission and key stakeholders to promote synergies between different innovation programmes by means of a ‘Joint Undertaking’.

A Joint Undertaking is a formal public–private partnership under EU law. For this, the EU allocates funds to industry, research institutes, and occasionally to member states.

ACEA is saying somehow, “We like this proposed EU-industry research programme, but make sure the automakers themselves are at the table from day one and have a strong say in what gets researched and funded.”

Not all differences cleared yet

Although nothing was written in stone yet, Källenius expressed an optimistic view. “We may not have cleared all differences yet, nor have we answered all challenges. But we are positive to see the solution space is broadening, and confident that the work of the next months will yield results.”

The differences Källenius refers to are with the EU Commission, but even within the group of carmakers themselves, there are discordant notes.

Håkan Samuelsson (Volvo) and Michael Lohscheller (Polestar) are advocating the opposite and urged the EU not to give in to the pressure.

They both were signatories to an open letter by more than 150 companies in the EV value chain calling on the EU commission to stand firm. Although representatives from those signatories – like FastNed CEO and current President of the Board of ChargeUp Europe, Michiel Langezaal, were present at the meeting with Von der Leyen, Samuelsson, and Lohscheller were not.

‘Debates counterproductieve’

Another sound was heard from Audi CEO Gernot Döllner, who said this week that the auto industry’s constant pleading for loosening the rules is ‘counterproductive.’

In an interview with German weekly business magazine, Wirtschaftswoche, he said: “I know of no better technology than the electric car to make progress in reducing CO2 emissions in traffic over the next few years.”

“But even apart from climate protection, the electric car is simply the better technology. Instead of emphasizing these advantages, new debates about the preservation of the combustion engine are constantly being sparked. This is counterproductive and unsettles customers”.