“Declining diesel car share not a hurdle for meeting EU’s CO₂ reduction targets”

The average diesel passenger car on Europe’s roads emits less CO₂ than a comparable petrol car, but the compliance cost of meeting the European Union’s CO2 reduction target for new cars by 2025 would be up to 280 euros per vehicle lower with fewer diesel cars sold, according to a new study by the independent research organization International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT). New diesel cars on average emitted nearly identical amounts of CO₂ as new petrol cars, and “efficiency gains from the diesel engine often are counterbalanced by a higher engine power and higher weight for diesel cars,” according to Peter Mock, Managing Director of ICCT in Europe.

Find the press release in English here and the paper in English here.

For background, read the CLEW dossier The Energiewende and German carmakers.