Manufacturers are making unusual pooling agreements with rival firms to avoid big EU fines for missing CO2 emissions reduction targets.This is legal. Fiat-Chrysler, Ford, Honda and others have brokered deals.
The EU-wide fleet-average CO2 emissions limit in 2021 will be 95 grams per kilometer. Manufacturers set individual benchmarks based on the specific products they produce. There is a gradual phase in of the 2021 targets in 2020.
Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) and Ford thought they needed pooling agreements to slash the CO2 emissions produced by their new cars and trucks.
FCA made a deal with Tesla last year. They will pay Elon Musk’s company hundreds of millions of euros to pool emission data, bringing the average down.
Honda joined that pool in October, after weak sales of its newest electric model. Tesla’s sales should cover both Honda and FCA needs. To offset that expense, Honda ended its involvement in Formula One racing, where it provides engines for two teams.
Ford pooled with Volvo; and Toyota-Mazda extended their existing agreement.
Volkswagen recently teamed up with Chinese partner MG Motor as an “insurance policy” agreement that will allow VW to count MG Moyor's electric car sales along with its own.
Jaguar-Land Rover set aside more than €100 million to pay fines. The SUV-maker has an easier target to hit, because it is called a "niche manufacturer, but is not confident if meeting that target.
Peugeot is set to merge with FCA early next year. FCA wants to include Peugeot's small-car electric-vehicle sales to comply with the EU target and avoid penalties.
The first nine months of the year EU new passenger car registrations fell nearly 30%. September was the first month of year-over-year growth in 2020 (source: European Automobile Manufacturers Association). The accelerating COVID-19 infections in the EU are hurting vehicle sales in October and November.
The next major CO2 emissions target for 2030 is a 37.5% emissions reduction compared with a 2021 baseline.