As he steps down from the alternating presidency of the ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association), Luca de Meo (CEO Renault Group – CEO Ampere) foresees a very dark future for the European automotive market related to electric cars. In an interview with the Dutch media De Tijd, Luca de Meo explains why the production costs of electric vehicles could significantly increase in the coming years.
While many experts agree that the prices of electric cars will decrease by 2035, Luca de Meo does not share this opinion at all. Last December, via the ACEA, the head of Renault Group and Ampere had already warned the EU about CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy). Indeed, this regulation could cost car manufacturers very dearly if they do not respect the 81 g/km average CO2 emissions across their entire production.
This time, De Meo explained to our colleagues at De Tijd that due to future regulations that will be implemented by the EU, the prices of BEV (Battery Electric Vehicles) could “explode” by 2030, while the Chinese electric sector is years ahead of Europe and the United States, with much lower production costs. Luca de Meo thus declared:
“Europe’s argument is often that these rules strengthen competition. But an engineer at Renault trying to make a car compliant does not create a competitive advantage. Because all car manufacturers must comply with these rules. And since it is a regulation, the car buyer does not ask to pay for it. But the additional rules that will be added will increase the production costs of a car by 40% by 2030.”
Regarding electric cars “made in China,” Luca de Meo adds, taking into account the compensatory tariffs imposed by the EU since November 1, 2024:
“As history has shown, these import tariffs last at most five to eight years, then decrease again. This gives us time. But I wonder if in five years we will be more able to compete with Chinese car manufacturers. By then, will we be able to build cars at the same costs and with the same technology as the Chinese?”
Finally, in a few days, the sales figures for electric cars for the European automotive market will be published. They will undoubtedly be down for the year 2024. What is also certain is that simple hybrid models like HEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicles) were much more popular last year.
Photos: LesVoitures.com and Renault