Following a call for a review of the U.K.’s zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) mandate by the nation’s industry body, the U.K. government is reportedly arranging a meeting with automakers.
In a Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders update published June 12, CEO Mike Hawes reflected auto industry concerns that it will face even more costs from discounts and buying credits from EV manufacturers with a mandate that has already cost the industry more than 10 billion British pounds ($13.4 billion) in the past two years,
Under the current ZEV mandate, automakers are charged up to 15,000 pounds per vehicle sold that is not an EV. The percentage of new-car sales that need to be EVs increases each year, with targets of 28% for 2025, 33% for 2026 and so on until it reaches 80% by 2030.
So far, SMMT figures show the current EV market share in the U.K. is just 23.9%, still well below this year’s target.
Similar pressure from automakers in the European Union saw its trade body, the European Commission, allow a three-year delay in reaching current targets on the way to a total ICE ban by 2035.
Yet, the industry group CEO argues, consumers are not responding in enough numbers to accelerate the switch to EV transport.
“Targets alone do not cut emissions — new vehicle uptake does,” said Hawes in his article. “Consumers and businesses will only switch when conditions — and costs — are right.”
Consumers still cite concerns over EV adoption, including costs of new vehicles, uncertainty about infrastructure and whether an EV will meet their driving needs, said Hawes.
This is exacerbated further with plans to tax EVs in the form of a pence-per-mile Vehicle Excise Duty charge.
“It’s clear that the assumptions underpinning the mandate no longer hold,” Hawes said. “An urgent review of the ZEV Mandate is therefore essential.”
Proposals to review the ZEV Mandate have also been welcomed by the nation’s Institute of the Motor Industry, albeit with a warning workers in the industry need more training in EV technologies.
In response to suggestions that the 2030 target could now be reduced to just 50% of new vehicle sales, IMI’s chief executive Nick Connor said in his June 15 statement that the move towards EV transition is unstoppable.
“We welcome the news that the ZEV Mandate is set to be reviewed, but whatever the final figure turns out to be, the direction of travel hasn't changed — the UK is moving to electric vehicles, and the automotive workforce needs to be ready for that future, regardless of where the target line is drawn,” said Connor.
Targets have to be realistic and deliverable for manufacturers, for the supply chain and for the consumers who'll ultimately decide how quickly this transition happens, he said.
“However, it’s important that a relaxed target isn’t seen by the wider sector as a signal to slow down on training and skills investment,” said Connor. “Yet our latest IMI EV TechSafe data shows that only around a third of UK technicians currently hold an EV qualification.”
