By Jon Lawes, managing director at MHC Mobility

Jon Lawes, managing director, MHC Mobility

In recent months, there has been a growing narrative, and concern amongst experts, that European politicians have gone cold on climate measures and efforts to promote the green mobility transformation. There have been a number of high-profile climate measures that have been watered down, undermining the progress which has been made on the net zero transition.

The narrative is that, as voters feel the impact of net zero measures amid the cost-of-living crisis, politicians are coming under pressure to put the brakes on carbon reduction measures. However, the challenge facing corporate fleets is how to separate the facts from the noise.

Europe losing focus

On the one hand, the EU adopted a diluted set of Euro 7 standards in September. As originally proposed, the regulations would have significantly tightened limits on other sources of vehicle pollution beyond the current focus on greenhouse emissions from ICE vehicles. But the regulation that was ultimately approved is much closer to the former Euro 6 framework – legislation from 2014 – than the forward-looking law-making needed to support the future of green mobility.

In a similar story earlier this year, lobbying from Germany and Italy secured a lifeline for ICE vehicles with an exemption for so-called e-fuels. These synthetic alternatives are produced using captured emissions, making them carbon neutral. However, the cost of production and lack of a clear path to adoption means this technology could prove to be a distraction from efforts to decarbonise mobility with proven technologies.

Across the Channel, the UK has already delayed the country’s ban on new ICE vehicles by five years to 2035. And most recently, the EU’s Climate Commissioner attracted criticism for watering down the bloc’s negotiating position at COP 28, rolling back a previous EU commitment on the language around fossil fuels phase-out. This leaves the door open to fossil fuel use as long as they are offset in some way, a practice which has been under intense scrutiny due to a lack of transparency and accountability.

All of these steps add up, and risk weakening the ambitions of states within the bloc, and in turn, reducing the confidence of businesses to continue investing in the transition.

EV adoption stagnating

Reflecting these challenges, our running fleet and order book indicates the green transition has started showing some signs of slowing down after impressive growth in the last 12 to 18 months.

Nonetheless, the EU’s target for phasing out ICE vehicles by 2035 remains in place, notwithstanding the exception for e-fuels. Countries in the bloc are also waking up to the fact that incentives are needed to drive the adoption of electric vehicles. And new regulations such as AFIR recognise the levels of infrastructure investment still needed to negate the current hurdles facing businesses and personal car users alike.

Elsewhere, the EU has agreed to ambitious new targets to decarbonise trucks by 2040. This is alongside new measures recently passed requiring over 50,000 companies to report and correct the ESG risks in their supply chain – which could provide greater insight into where companies need to reduce emissions.

These actions will also help move businesses toward recognising the need to transition to a low-carbon economy. Most fleet managers by now are already invested in this process, with many committing to ambitious net-zero targets to ensure the transition stays on track.

The future of the green transition

Ultimately, the switch to zero emission vehicles is a non-negotiable task and will have to happen one way or another.

There is clearly still a long way to go on Europe’s transition, with vital charging infrastructure remaining a Continent-wide ‘postcode lottery’ and many EU nations falling behind the curve on EV adoption.

However, despite mixed signals from policymakers and a long road ahead, corporate fleets must look beyond the negative headlines and maintain their confidence and conviction in achieving net-zero targets. It’s not just the planet that will benefit; those that do embrace zero-emission mobility will find themselves rewarded by future-proofing their business operations.