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According to a study by the Association of German Engineers, the ecological balance of the electric car is anything but clean and good.
The VDI does not see itself as an opponent of the electric drive and emphasizes its impartiality.
After all, engineers worked on the further development of all types of drive, as its president emphasizes.
Photo: Hendrik Schmidt / DPA
Politically, the die has been cast: by 2030, Germany wants and should reduce its CO2 emissions by 55 percent for a better climate, according to the will of the federal government.
Road traffic should make a significant contribution to this and save 65 million tons of carbon dioxide alone.
Easier said than done: Volkswagen and Daimler are currently not even managing to comply with the current CO2 limits - despite increasing sales of electric cars, as a study recently showed.
Most of the tax money goes into promoting electric cars, so that customers can look forward to buying a new electric car that is up to 9,000 euros easier.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs only noticed very late that this, in combination with other programs, could possibly result in one-sided "over-funding".
From another point of view, too, doubts recently arose as to whether the focus on electric drives is really that beneficial to climate protection goals.
The switch to electric cars will increase CO2 emissions in Germany by 40 million tonnes of CO2 net by 2030, warned the consultants from Stahl Automotive Consulting (SAC) in the summer.
It makes more sense to systematically switch off coal-fired power plants and at the same time continue to use economical combustion engines.
"In the context of the energy transition, electromobility makes no contribution to climate protection in Germany," was the conclusion of SAC boss Martin Stahl.
The ex-BMW manager and McKinsey advisor made it clear that he is not an opponent of electric cars.
There are also no clients from industry for the study.
But he wants an open debate.
Moderate life cycle assessment with batteries from China
"A complementary combination of technologies is our only chance to achieve the CO2 targets"
VDI President
Volker Kefer
The opponents of a unilateral subsidy and focus on e-cars are getting new support with the recently published study "Life cycle assessment of cars with different drive systems" by the Association of German Engineers (VDI).
Manager magazin has the elaboration.
"A complementary combination of technologies is our only chance to achieve the CO2 targets for 2030", VDI President
Volker Kefer
(64)
summarizes
the result.
The one-sided focus of politics on vehicles with battery drives, on the other hand, endangers the CO2 targets, emphasizes the study and makes the following key arguments:
The ecological balance of battery-electric vehicles is currently no better than that of vehicles with combustion engines.
Greenhouse gases that are created during vehicle production are currently around twice as high as with combustion engines.
Battery production is largely in Asia, especially China, where electricity is still mainly obtained from coal.
Only when electricity from renewable energies is used will electromobility score better in the climate balance.
Therefore, the battery cell production must also be relocated to Europe, demands the VDI at the same time.
The "competition for more range" and thus currently larger batteries is counterproductive for climate protection.
more on the subject
Avoid "over-funding": Trouble with e-car premiums - federal government stops programs
Study: VW and Daimler clearly miss their CO2 targets
Delivery bottlenecks and price jumps: Why the auto industry is heading for a battery crisisBy Michael Freitag and Margret Hucko
Production and recycling remain the central problem
As long as the question of the climate-friendly production of batteries is just as unsolved as battery recycling, the internal combustion engine is a "necessary technology" and "not worse" from the VDI's point of view.
At the same time, it is important to promote the development and distribution of synthetic fuels in order to improve the ecological balance of internal combustion engines, at least for a transitional phase.
At the same time, the study breaks a lance for fuel cell technology.
The fuel cell enables "currently the most environmentally friendly drive", especially in the short and medium-haul range, it is said.
It is particularly suitable for trucks. The desired CO2 reduction is only achieved here if the production of the hydrogen required for this comes from renewable sources.
The authors of the study are three engineers from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - a research university in the Helmholtz Association.
The institute is one of the world's renowned research institutions, especially in engineering disciplines.
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