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The European Commission has insisted it will stick to plans to impose tariffs on electric vehicles shipped between the UK and EU from next year after warning the bloc was losing in the global battle over battery investments. The British government, backed by automakers across Europe, is seeking a deferral of a post-Brexit trade rule that it argues will lead to excessive costs for the industry from 2024 to 2027. The requirement under the “rules of origin” requires that electric vehicles marketed across the English Channel have 60 per cent of their battery and 45 per cent of their parts by total value sourced from the EU or the UK or face 10 percent tariffs. But this week, a senior commission official, Richard Szostak, told British and EU parliamentarians that battery investment in the bloc had "fallen off a cliff" and that tariffs would incentivize domestic production. The EU's share of global investment in battery production fell from 41% in 2021 to just 2% in 2022, after the US offered large subsidies under its Inflation Reduction Act, he pointed.
In addition to the pull factor . we would be adding a push factor by encouraging the purchase of batteries in China or the US [by not introducing cross-Channel tariffs]. That’s the other side of the argument,” Szostak said. “The EU, in Job Function Email Database judging its interest, has to look at both sides of this issue,” he added. The slow pace of battery factory openings across the continent and the UK, coupled with Chinese dominance in key parts of the process, means most cars made in Europe will not comply with the new rules of origin. EU car lobby group ACEA estimated its members would face a €4.3 billion bill for the tax between 2024 and 2026. The problem is most acute for continental European carmakers that sell a large number of vehicles in the UK, including VW, Mercedes and Ford, because the British government will introduce a new electric vehicle quota next year. Carmakers must have 22 per cent of their UK sales made up of zero-emission vehicles by.
Meeting that target will require the import of electric vehicles built on the continent. Most Japanese and South Korean electric vehicles can be imported into the UK without tariffs under the terms of their post-Brexit trade deals. This would mean EU carmakers would lose market share in the UK if their electric vehicles were hit by 10 per cent levies. Vehicles made in China already pay the tariffs, but can compete with EVs made in the EU due to their much lower starting price. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, which represents the UK car industry, also warned that introducing tariffs on EU imports would delay the sale of electric vehicles in the UK, as the extra cost would mean higher prices. higher for consumers. EU-based carmakers hope their national governments will pressure the commission to change its approach, but they admit that has not happened yet. “No one really wants the political signal they get when customs duties on electric vehicles suddenly increase by 10 percent,” said one industry official. “There is definitely a willingness to talk about this.
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發表於 2024-3-9 18:12:15