How carmakers fought EU emission rules and won
BRUSSELS — In a case of remarkably successful special pleading, Europe's car industry has succeeded in watering down potentially very costly EU rules on CO2 emissions.
The effort was approved by the European Parliament on Thursday.
It's yet another sign that the EU's green efforts are running into growing resistance. The original idea had been to require European car manufacturers to reduce carbon emissions by 15 percent by 2025 compared to a 2021 baseline. Carmakers failing to hit the target would have to pay €95 for every gram of CO2 emitted above the limit per kilometer per noncompliant vehicle sold.
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The industry warned that could amount to an eye-watering €15 billion in fines.
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