法德达成政治协议，拟推动欧盟将2035年新车减排目标从100%电动/气候中性放宽至90%，并配套“欧洲制造”产业规则

Germany and France will push to scrap a landmark European Union goal to reach climate neutrality for cars by 2035, after agreeing a deal to protect their domestic industries against intensifying global competition.

The two sides struck an accord Friday that reflects both the German push for looser CO2 standards for the auto sector and the French desire for a strict “made in Europe” definition. The end result is that the two will lobby for a significant watering down of a key pillar of the EU’s green deal to reach net-zero by 2050.

Paris and Berlin will seek to lower overall emissions cuts for autos to 90% by 2035, without having to compensate the remaining 10% through offsets via green steel, which underpinned a reform by the European Commission earlier this year. Instead such offsets will be counted as part of the 90% target.

It marks a significant shift in approach. At the beginning of the year, EU automakers were facing obligations for new car sales to be 100% electric by 2035. The Franco-German deal would mean the goal of reaching climate neutrality in cars no longer exists.

Germany had been pushing for looser goals to safeguard jobs throughout the supply chain, and French carmaker Renault SA Chief Executive Officer Francois Provost warned this week that output would have to be curtailed significantly if changes weren’t made.

“We have a clear ambition: to successfully transform our automotive industry, whilst maintaining our climate targets and our production in Europe,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in a post on X following the deal which was negotiated during a summit in Brussels.

Still, there will be concern that the deal struck between Europe’s two biggest countries could leave the region’s carmakers even further behind in the electrification race against China. It also comes at a time when electric vehicle sales are picking up, as the Iran war boosts gasoline and diesel prices.

“Germany and France are making a historic mistake,” said Anna Krajinska, senior director for vehicles and industrial transformation at T&E, which campaigns for clean energy and transport. “German and French political leaders claim they are acting to save jobs, but this may well be the deal that buries Europe’s auto industry.”

The two sides opened the door for the UK to qualify for European subsidies under “Made in Europe” rules set out by the Industrial Accelerator Act, something that has been long sought by London. To benefit, however, the country will have to align on the EU’s rules on foreign direct investment and trade defense, a thinly-veiled reference to measures the bloc has taken against China.

Agreement on the deal was delayed after the Social Democratic Party, the left-leaning junior coalition partner in Germany’s government, demanded assurances on protections for German jobs and manufacturing.

The Franco-German accord provides political momentum but is not yet a done deal: changes to EU car-emissions rules and the Industrial Accelerator Act still require agreement among member states and the European Parliament. The Irish presidency of the EU is seeking a deal among nations on cars by the end of the year.

Christophe Perillat, CEO of French auto parts supplier Valeo SA, welcomed the Franco-German deal.

“We are all fully engaged and working in a coordinated manner to defend the European industry,” he wrote in emailed response to a Bloomberg query.

The development comes days after the EU and China reached an understanding that would cap China-made hybrid imports into the bloc at 350,000 vehicles in 2027, compared with about 800,000 expected this year. Hybrids had not been covered by the EU’s 2024 tariffs on Chinese battery-electric cars, helping shipments surge.

EU leaders discussed how best to boost industrial competitiveness at a meeting in Brussels Thursday.

“We have made the right decisions for the hundreds of thousands of employees and the locations of the German auto industry,” said Lars Klingbeil, Germany’s foreign minister. “Automakers have a responsibility to invest in the future of German manufacturing sites and to secure jobs.”