German govt and industry pledge support for 2030 electric car target at mobility summit

The German government and leading automakers reiterated their goal of putting at least 15 million electric vehicles on German roads by 2030 at an industry summit in Berlin on Monday (27 November). The ambitious goal looks increasingly difficult to achieve in view of declining sales, but political leaders and industry representatives remained resolute. Hosted by chancellor Olaf Scholz, the Transformation of the Automotive and Mobility Industry Strategy Platform focused largely on the need for electric cars over other potential solutions, such as fuel cells and synthetic fuels. Electric vehicle advocates in industry and government argued that fuel cells and e-fuels were “not an alternative,” Tagesspiegel reported. Participants, which also included representatives from auto suppliers, semiconductor and battery producers, the energy sector and environmental associations, also agreed that the costs of electric cars must be reduced in order to achieve the target figure.

Technological developments in batteries and the increasing development of a circular economy could also contribute to lower prices, the government said in statement. Participants also welcomed measures to promote the development of semiconductor and battery production capacities and investments in the expansion of local industrial networks, which are expected to strengthen the resilience of the industry – a major goal of the summit. In further efforts to bolster resilience, automakers and suppliers have changed their procurement strategies of raw materials and semiconductors through long-term supply contracts, purchase guarantees and cooperation and planning along the entire value chain. Monday’s summit followed the first such mobility event held early this year in which Scholz sought to renew efforts to tackle the country’s lagging emission reductions in the transport sector.