Here are the (meager) results of the electric car lobbyists on the Meloni government
At the European level, the judgment on the ban on the sale of new internal combustion engine vehicles from 2035 was suspended due to the opposition of Italy and Germany. Here's what the Meloni government thinks about the electric car
Is there an electric car lobby in Italy?
Some say yes, but judging by the results the electric car lobby and lobbyists are reaping a meager pick so far. Here's why: this morning the presidency of the EU, entrusted to Sweden, communicated that Coreper, the body that brings together the representatives of the states, will not pronounce itself on the regulation concerning the CO2 emissions of new diesel and petrol cars and vans, which establishes the stop of placing on the market from 2035 , as planned. But at the meeting on Friday 3 March.
The reason? The decision of the Italian government to vote against and the indication of Germany which made the yes subject to the presentation of a Community proposal which provides for the registration of cars and light commercial vehicles with combustion engines even after 2035 on condition that they can be fueled from synthetic fuels.
WHAT ITALY WILL DO AGAINST THE EUROPEAN BAN FOR THERMAL ENGINES
While sharing the decarbonisation objectives, explained the Minister of the Environment Pichetto Fratin in a note dated February 28, Italy maintains that the environmental targets must be pursued through "an economically sustainable and socially equitable transition", planned and guided with great care , to avoid negative repercussions for the country both in terms of employment and production. Italy also believes that the choice of electric should not be the only way to achieve zero emissions in the transition phase.
The success of electric cars will depend a lot on how affordable they become. A rational choice of technological neutrality in the face of shared environmental objectives must allow the Member States to make use of all the solutions to decarbonise the transport sector, taking into account the different national realities and with a more gradual planning of the times. "The use of renewable fuels, compatible with thermal engines" – said Minister Pichetto – "will contribute to a reduction in emissions without requiring unattainable economic sacrifices from citizens".
The point is in fact much debated in Italy and the representatives of the Meloni government have been maintaining a firm line on the subject for some time. Let's see what are the statements of the majority of the last few weeks:
WHAT GIORGIA MELONI THINKS ABOUT ELECTRIC CARS
In an interview with Il Sole 24 Ore on February 8, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni dealt with the topic of electric cars among other things. “I share the concerns of the operators in the sector. The stop from 2035 to heat engines puts the European automotive industry in serious difficulty, which is confronted in a global market where there are no such stringent rules in the short to medium term”.
According to Meloni “the path towards greater environmental sustainability must be gradual and must not put Italian and European companies in difficulty. Imposing such a short deadline for an epochal transformation of this type risks having very serious consequences from an employment and production point of view, as well as having dubious effectiveness from an environmental point of view given the high impact on the environment of the production of electric cars and the more and more efficient than combustion ones. We must prevent this emergency. There is convergence in Italy on this issue and I am placing it forcefully in Europe”.
EUROPE WRONG ABOUT ELECTRIC CARS, SAYS TAJANI
"I am a great supporter of the electric car but ambitious goals must be achieved seriously, not just on paper: that's why" on the stop on petrol and diesel in 2035, approved yesterday by the European Parliament "Italy will put forward its counter-proposal: limit the reduction to 90%, giving the industries the opportunity to adapt", said the deputy prime minister and foreign minister Antonio Tajani on TG1 on February 15, defining "a serious mistake" Europe's decision to put an end to the construction of engines electric from 2035.
“The fight against climate change must be done but it requires achievable objectives”. “As a member of the European Parliament – explained the foreign minister – I voted against that proposal from the very first time, because we must also defend our automotive industry. With this reform we risk losing over 70,000 jobs. This is why we asked to start reducing CO2 emissions not by 100 but by 90% from 2035, to allow the automotive industry (and the many Italian component companies that also serve companies in other European countries) to adapt. The fight against climate change must be done – he concluded – but it requires achievable objectives”.
THE TRANSITION MUST BE ACCOMPANIED, SAYS SALVINI
"Time is a determining factor: we are all in agreement on the final goal, but running excessively risks producing the opposite effect" said the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Matteo Salvini on February 28 at the end of the round table work on the occasion of the informal Council underway in Stockholm, referring to the stop to the production of petrol and diesel vehicles from 2035. "The transition in which we all believe must be encouraged and accompanied" and "the right to mobility must be guaranteed to all", thinking of who cannot afford to buy an electric car.
WHAT URSO WROTE
“With our No we woke up Europe. Let's hope that others understand that it's time for reason, certainly not for resignation! We will be in the field on all the dossiers until the revision clause of 2026. You can change”, wrote the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, in a post on Twitter this morning, commenting on the postponement of the vote expected today on the stop to the sale of endothermic engines starting from 2035.
MORE PLANNING IS NEEDED, SAYS GUSMEROLI (LEAGUE)
"We need an energy and technological transition that is a gradual process, with no fixed dates, and that protects the social sustainability of the objectives set by the EU in the same way as their environmental sustainability", the words of Alberto Gusmeroli, president of the Productive Activities commission, Commerce and Tourism of the Chamber, and responsible for the Tax Unit of the Economics department of the League, speaking at the conference 'Technological development for the energy transition' organized by Edison Italia.
“We are not against Europe – Gusmeroli points out – but in favor of a Europe that protects the productive fabric of the territories and our businesses, without distorting them and without leaving dead and wounded in the field. Also because behind the businesses there are families. The case of the automotive industry is emblematic: with the transition to electric power, 85% of vehicle components will disappear, putting a sector that employs 150,000 people in Italy alone in serious difficulty. This country, with the centre-right majority in Parliament and in the government, now finally has the opportunity to change pace, starting to think about medium-long term plans that give a strategy to fundamental issues, such as mobility and energy, on which the future of all depends”.
PICKET: THE ELECTRIC CAR IS FOR THE RICH
“The electric car right now is only made for the rich. In our country, the car fleet is 40 million, still two million Euro1 and Euro 2, and the thought of replacing with electric cars is unimaginable at the moment", thundered the Minister of the Environment, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, on Radio24 lo last February 24, specifying that "it is a path to take but we need to be less ideological" and "more balanced".
The previous day, Minister Fratin himself had recalled that the government had repeatedly expressed its perplexity about the times and ways that Europe has established for the supersession of petrol and diesel engines. "Government action will proceed along two directions: on the one hand, to promote greater gradualness in stopping the marketing of vehicles, on the other, to push the maximum in the production of biofuels, which represent a clean supply chain that would allow the current approach to be maintained of the automotive production system”.
“This does not mean – the minister specified – questioning the environmental objectives; petrol and diesel are polluting and must be gradually replaced; but at the same time, a restructuring process of the automotive sector must be guaranteed which guarantees solid development prospects and maximum protection of employment levels".
THE OPINION OF GELMETTI (FDI)
The automotive supply chain represents about 20% of the Italian GDP, with almost 270,000 workers including car manufacturers, component suppliers and fitters. There is therefore great concern about the risks and repercussions in terms of employment of the ban on internal combustion engines in Europe between 2030 and 2035. For this reason, the guarantees expressed today in the hall by Minister Urso are important, on the commitment to safeguard production levels, employment stability in the sector and to ensure the reconversion of the supply chain. The Italians today have the confirmation that the Meloni government wants to create an industrial policy, which serves the interests of Italian citizens, products and services", Adolfo declared in the courtroom during question time to the Minister of Enterprise and Made in Italy Urso last February 23, the senator of the Brothers of Italy Matteo Gelmetti.
THE COLLECTION OF SIGNATURES OF THE LEAGUE
On February 23, the League had issued a note to start collecting signatures against the stop to endothermic engines: "Due to a measure voted by the European Parliament, from 2035 the sale of cars with combustion engines will be prohibited throughout the European Union . A disaster that would lead to over half a million layoffs throughout Europe and thousands of bankruptcies in Italy. The automotive sector is a strategic industry for our country: this choice would be a real gift to China, the world's leading producer of electric batteries for CARs. This is not common sense: the due battle for environmental sustainability must be accompanied by economic and social sustainability. Let's make our voice heard and save Italian jobs,” the statement read.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/lobby-auto-elettrica-italia/ on Wed, 01 Mar 2023 12:10:18 +0000.