It has been written for a long time that Chinese electric cars are slowly but surely taking over the European market and endangering domestic production. Now that things have become serious, the question arises: How to protect European car manufacturers? France was the first to react by canceling incentives for electric cars produced in China.
To protect domestic car manufacturers, the French government is considering a new subsidy decree. Citizens with lower incomes will have a subsidy of up to 7,000 euros for the purchase of a new electric car, while for others it will be up to 5,000 euros.
The French Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME) will assess the car manufacturers’ requests and decide which models will be eligible for the subsidy. Materials, energy consumption, battery type, and the impact of transporting vehicles to Europe on the environment will be taken into account. French President Emmanuel Macron first announced the decision in May. Macron then said that the use of “French taxpayers’ money” to subsidize cars made outside the EU should stop.
“Customers who ordered cars from China can ask for a refund, but that would no longer be the case for most of them under the model we have created. If you don’t produce vehicles in the country, you will hardly remain eligible for the green bonus,” the French official said.
The decree has not yet been adopted, and the French government hopes that it will not affect relations between the two countries, as it complies with the rules of the World Trade Organization. The Chinese government has not yet commented on this.
Source: Reuters
