Top EU countries spend $45 billion subsidizing fossil-fuel company cars, says study

admin admin | 10-21 16:20

Company cars make up around 60% of new car sales in Europe.
The EU's five biggest members spend 42 billion euros ( USD 45.60 billion) annually subsidizing fossil-fuel company cars, according to a study commissioned by environmental group Transport & Environment (T&E), which called for more subsidies for EVs instead.

Company cars make up around 60% of new car sales in Europe.

Italy provides 16 billion euros in subsidies for fossil-fuel company cars, followed by Germany, which provides 13.7 billion euros, the study by consultancy Environmental Resources Management (ERM), released on Monday, showed.

France and Poland provided 6.4 billion euros and 6.1 billion euros annually respectively.

Companies offer cars as perks for employees, often with significant benefit-in-kind subsidies including offsetting consumer taxes and fuel usage benefits.

Around 15 billion euros across the four countries goes to subsidizing SUVs, the study found. Company car drivers receive an average annual tax benefit of 6,800 euros, ranging up to 21,600 euros for high-polluting larger models.

"This is completely illogical and completely unacceptable, that we're still pouring billions of taxpayer money into a technology that's completely contradictory to the European Commission's green transition agenda," T&E's director of fleets Stef Cornelis told Reuters.

The study comes as Europe's EV sales have fallen, in part because they are more expensive than fossil-fuel equivalent models and thus out of reach for many consumers.

Sales of fully electric cars slumped 43.9% in the European Union in August, as its biggest EV markets Germany and France recorded drops of 68.8% and 33.1% respectively, according to industry data.

The ERM study found that financial incentives for drivers of company cars to switch to EVs are only provided in former EU member the United Kingdom.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the European Union's new climate chief Wopke Hoekstra in a letter dated Sept. 17 that one of Hoekstra's priorities will be to propose how to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies.

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.


ALSO READ

Hyundai Motor India lists with record IPO, commits to Indian market with new tech and EV plans

As part of its effort to introduce clean mobility solutions for Indian buyers, Hyundai will launch f...

auto | 5 hours ago

Skoda Auto Volkswagen India plants over 7 lakh trees in Maharashtra for ecological restoration

Additionally, SAVWIPL has installed 18.5 MWp of rooftop solar power at its Chakan facility, which of...

auto | 5 hours ago

Mega Corporation launches Lendingo to enhance EV financing solutions

Mega Corporation on Monday announced the launch of a new division, Lendingo. Mega Corporation on Mon...

auto | 5 hours ago

GreenLine accelerates decarbonisation efforts with 1,000 LNG trucks by March 2025

The government in a recent draft policy proposed to convert a third of long-haul trucks into LNG pow...

auto | 5 hours ago

Remsons Industries acquires 51% stake in BEE Lighting to enhance automotive lighting solutions

Established in 2006, BEE Lighting specialises in automotive headlamps, rear lamps, and various exter...

auto | 5 hours ago

EV Recharge partners with ZEVO for mobile EV charging solutions

EV Recharge’s technology can charge vehicles from 0% to 80% in just 20 minutes, a significant improv...

auto | 5 hours ago