France attacks "dangerous" German effort to change EU car engine rules

France is ready to "fight" Germany to save EU green transport legislation which effectively bans the sale of combustion engine-installed cars and vans from 2035, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said on March 13.

His comments put Paris and Berlin on a collision course over the draft law — a critical part of the EU's green agenda which mandates that automakers only sell zero-emission vehicles from 2035, Politico reports.

"We are ready to fight for it, because [to delay] it is an environmental mistake and I also think it is an economic mistake," Le Maire told France Info.

The German government, alongside allies like Italy, Poland, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, are threatening to block the legislation at the last minute unless they secure changes to the text that would allow a loophole for cars running on e-fuels — a synthetic and somewhat greener alternative to fossil fuels that can be used in conventional combustion engines.

Ministers from Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic and Poland meet in Strasbourg Monday afternoon to hash out their plan to save the combustion engine.

But Paris has no truck with changing a measure that was agreed over two tortuous years of talks, finalized between EU countries during France's European Council presidency last year, and only needs a formal stamp of approval from ministers to become law.

"Economically it is incoherent, industrially it is dangerous, it is not in our national interest, it is not in the interest of our national manufacturers and above all it is not in the interest of the planet," Le Maire said of efforts to stall the plan.

Germany's resistance is led by the Free Democratic Party, a junior member of the ruling coalition that runs the transport ministry. The FDP feels it has hit on a potent political issue by tapping into fears over the wrenching change that will accompany a transition to electric vehicles — something that will be a death knell for hundreds of companies specializing in components for combustion engines but which have no place in an EV world.

There is also worry that switching to electric cars will open Europe to attack from Chinese carmakers, which lead the world in battery technology and EV production and are eyeing the lucrative EU market.

The German government is currently in talks with the European Commission over a potential deal. One possible fix is for the Commission to draft a legal declaration that would spell out a way for e-fuels to be used in vehicles sold after 2035 — but that alarms many as it could undermine the bloc's climate targets.

A spokesperson for Germany's transport ministry said a "constructive proposal” had not yet been put forward by Brussels. A resolution is in the hands of the FDP, as it will have to decide if any language proposed by the Commission meets its demands.

If that effort falls through, then Berlin and its allies would effectively be demanding that talks on the 2035 legislation be reopened. Le Maire made France's position on that clear, and the European Parliament has also insisted it won't enter into renewed talks.

Continental divide

The standoff aligns France with other countries backing the 2035 clean car target, such as Spain, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands.

The row undermines Europe's claim to be a global leader in cutting greenhouse gas emissions, and also risks spilling into broader debates over the balance of power in continental politics.

"For the French, this situation also represents an opportunity," said one diplomat from a country in favor of an engine ban. "The more they can contribute to the idea that Germany goes at it alone, the more it strengthens the view that the Germans are an unreliable partner in Europe."

Le Maire wants Europe's automakers to rapidly make the switch to electric vehicles and has supported France's massive state subsidy programs for EVs, as well as EU efforts to pour billions into creating a home-grown battery cell industry.

"We can't say that there is a climate emergency — which is the case, which we all know in our cities, in our metropolises, which are still far too polluted — and then step back on the objective of switching to electric vehicles," said Le Maire.