UK new car CO2 emissions down 2.9% in 2014 - 17th successive year of improvement
Wed 29 April 2015
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Average UK new car CO2 emissions fell 2.9% in 2014 compared with the previous year according to the latest annual SMMT New Car CO2 Report. Average emissions are down by almost a quarter since 2007 to 124.6g/km; 4.2% below the EU's regulated target of 130g/km set for 2015.
The rate of progress slowed slightly in 2014 compared with 2013, when average new car emissions fell 3.6% compared with the previous year.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders says that the shift to more efficient diesel and petrol engines has been critical to this success, while significant growth of the alternatively fuelled vehicles (AFV) market has also contributed.
The European Environment Agency (EEA) recently reported that new cars sold across the European Union in 2014 emitted on average 2.6 % less CO2 than those sold in 2013 and almost 7 grammes of CO2/km below the 2015 target.
The average emissions level of a new car sold in Europe in 2014 was 123.4g CO2/km, slightly ahead of the UK figure and significantly below the 2015 target of 130g, according to provisional data. Since monitoring started under current legislation in 2010, emissions have decreased by 17 g CO2/km (12 %).
The SMMT says that the New Car CO2 Report shows the huge impact the EU CO2 regulations, alongside significant UK government support, are having on emissions from all types of cars.
Mike Hawes, the SMMT Chief Executive, said, “The UK automotive sector has made enormous strides in cutting emissions across the board and should be proud of its achievements. However, there is a long way to go, and meeting ambitious targets in 2020 will require ongoing support and investment.
"Striking the delicate balance between influencing buying behaviour, encouraging investment and maintaining critical tax income will be a big challenge. The SMMT is committed to working with the next government to make the changes now that will help the industry meet the even greater cuts in CO2 demanded in the future.”
Sales of plug-in vehicles increased fourfold to 14,498 in 2014 and, for the first time, the UK was ahead in Europe, registering more new plug-ins than any other country. By the end of the year, there were 52,000 AFVs, including hybrids, plug-ins and range extenders, on the road – a 58.1% increase on 2013.
Commenting on the report Andy Eastlake the Managing Director of the LowCVP said “The automotive industry has continued to make great progress in technology development and the rapid rise in the SMMT AFV category is great news. It is however interesting to note that this is now exclusively a variety of levels of electrification from hybrids of petrol and Diesel through to pure electric. With the work underway on lower carbon fuels and their infrastructure, I hope we can get progress on fuels to match the progress seen in the OEM vehicle efficiency”
Manufacturers will have to accelerate the rate of emissions reductions to meet the target of 95g CO2/km by 2021.
Cutting CO2 emissions is, however, having an impact on government revenues from Vehicle Excise Duty. The SMMT published a second report alongside the New Car CO2 report which explores the options for future motoring taxation. (See related story.)
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