The Volkswagen group missed European CO2 emissions standards by 0.5 grams in 2020, despite a jump in sales of electric cars, but said Thursday it was confident for the current year.
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A possible fine, which could exceed 100 million euros according to European regulations, "
will have no impact
" on the result in the 4th quarter because provisions have already been set aside, said the German manufacturer in a press release. .
Sales of electrified cars in the EU, Norway and the UK, needed to comply with regulations, more than quadrupled in 2020, to 315,000 electric and hybrid cars, making Volkswagen the leader in the European electric market.
Average CO2 emissions are down 20% to 99.8 grams per kilometer.
Manufacturers should normally hit an average of 95g / km on their cars sold in Europe - but the value is adjusted to the weight of the fleet, resulting in higher individual targets for some.
The regulations will be further tightened in 2025 and 2030. In addition, the 5% of sales of the most polluting models were excluded from the calculation for 2020, before being taken into account at 100% from 2021. “
The Covid-19 pandemic has complicated
The task of the group, which includes Audi and Porsche, to achieve anti-pollution targets, said the boss, Herbert Diess, quoted in a statement.
Software problems had also delayed the marketing of the ID.3, the flagship model of the manufacturer's electrical strategy.
Volkswagen faces a fine of nearly 140 million euros, according to analyst Matthias Schmidt.
The VW and Audi brands have individually met the standards.
These two brands are also driving sales of the group's electrical segment, which has planned to invest more than 35 billion euros in this technology in a few years.
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Thanks to new VW, Skoda and Cupra (Seat) models expected in 2021 "
we will achieve the standards this year
", assured Mr. Diess.
The group intends to offer 70 electric models by 2030 to sell 26 million units in ten years.
Daimler believes for its part to be already in the nails: "
our forecasts let us conclude that we have reached
" the European objectives, explained recently the boss of the group, Ola Källenius, also confident for 2021. BMW also explained in mid-January to have “
More than met
” European standards thanks to a growth of more than 30% in sales of electric and hybrid cars, which represented 15% of sales.