Meeting the European Union’s zero-CO2-emissions target for cars in France

André de Palma, Robin Lindsey and Yannik Riou

Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 2025, vol. 199, issue C

Abstract: In April 2023, the European Commission issued a Directive to ban the sale after 2034 of new passenger cars that emit CO2. The Directive will have pervasive effects on motorists, the automobile industry, electricity demand, and raw material demand. We examine the Directive from a French perspective, focusing on Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) which account for most of the electric vehicle market in France. We compare the private costs of owning and operating BEVs and internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) as a function of annual distance driven, fuel prices, and other factors. Taking into account vehicle purchase incentives, emissions penalties, and taxes on fuel and electricity, we then estimate the financial cost to the French government of replacing ICEVs with BEVs. We conclude by reviewing the effects of the Directive on consumers’ choice of automobiles, the challenges faced by the automobile industry, and the prospects that the potential environmental benefits of BEVs will be weakened by imports of BEVs into Europe, and exports of ICEVs from Europe.

Keywords: Electric vehicles; Internal combustion engine vehicles; EU sales ban; EU directive; CO2 emissions; Subsidies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H23 Q52 Q53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1016/j.tra.2025.104531

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