Dr. Peter Mock:

I will show some slides as I give my statement and I will build on what Professor Daly has said. We have a publication that we update every year and in that publication we show statistics on the vehicle market in Europe, and there is one statistic that is impressive, which shows the growth in SUV registrations over time. Members can see that from 2001, which we set as the starting point at 100%, the registration numbers for SUVs increased dramatically. Today they are at about 1,000%, compared with the 100% in 2001. That statistic illustrates nicely how the market has changed and how many SUVs we have on the road today.

However, not every SUV is a problem and not every SUV is much heavier than, let us say a limousine. In the current slide members can see one of the most famous or popular SUVs in Europe; it is the Volkswagen T-Roc, in comparison with the Volkswagen Golf, which is the most similar vehicle. As members can see in this example, both cars have the same power and pretty much the same weight but still the SUV has significantly higher CO2 emissions. Why is that? It is not only because of the weight but it is also the aerodynamics. If you drive the SUV-type vehicle, especially on the highway, the resistance from the air is much higher and that increases fuel consumption and emissions.

The real problem is not just the increase in SUVs but it is also the overall increase in vehicle size and weight. In the current slide members can see the first Volkswagen Golf from 1974 in comparison with today's Volkswagen Golf from 2023. What members can see is that today's Volkswagen Golf is significantly larger and higher but it is also much heavier than the original Volkswagen Golf. That is not only a problem because of CO2 emissions and fuel consumption, because the heavier the vehicle the more the CO2 emissions and fuel consumption typically are, but it is also a problem for pedestrian safety. It is a problem for cities, for the space in cities and for the road infrastructure, which gets damaged quickly if vehicles are heavier. The current slide shows another chart from our annual publication. What members can see here is that over time, the engine power and weight of vehicles in Europe have increased drastically and that CO2 emissions have gone down, at least on paper. However, if we did not have that great increase in SUVs and engine power, CO2 emissions could have decreased much more than they did.

Now we are moving to EVs so you could argue that fuel consumption and CO2 emissions are not that important any more. Even a heavy and big SUV could have zero emissions if it is electrified. However, then we are running into another problem, which is energy consumption.

It is nicely illustrated by the example of a new BMW XM SUV. It is a pretty powerful vehicle and a very heavy one. It weighs approximately 2.7 tonnes. It is not fully battery operated but is a plug-in hybrid vehicle. Officially, it has an electric range of 88 km and a fuel consumption of 1.6 l per 100 km. In reality, however, because the vehicle is so heavy and big, it consumes approximately 14.5 l per 100 km on the highway. The CO₂emissions are also much higher than advertised. That is not only a problem for plug-in hybrids but also for fully battery electric vehicles. The heavier they are, the bigger the batteries needs to be and the bigger the energy consumption and resources that need to be put into the production of the batteries.

I agree with what Professor Daly said. We need to be more cautious about vehicle weight and, ideally, it should be regulated. Looking across Europe, some examples of this can already be seen. France, for example, has what it calls a bonus malusvehicle taxation system when a vehicle is registered and purchased. For any vehicle heavier than 1.6 tonnes, from next year on, €1,000 will be charged per additional 100 kg. It is a substantial penalty for heavier vehicles. It is even more strict in Norway. It has had this rule for several years now. Norway has a taxation system based on the vehicle mass, its CO₂emissions and its nitrogen oxide emissions. Even if the weight component only is considered, approximately €2,000 per 100 kg is charged, which can easily add up to €11,000 for a 1.8 tonne passenger car.

I look forward to any questions the committee might have. My overall message is that heavier vehicles pose a problem. These include combustion engine vehicles but especially electric cars. We have seen some regulations in other parts of Europe where governments have tried to put a penalty on those vehicles.