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Germany's economy and climate ministry the European Commission鈥檚 plans for the automotive sector, arguing it will increase the sector's international competitiveness. "With the action plan, the European Commission is making the future viability of the automotive industry a core concern of its industrial policy," said the ministry, which is run by Green minister Robert Habeck. The ministry added it will now study the proposals in detail.

The so-called is built on the recommendations of a dialogue between different sector players. Rather than manufacturers having to comply with emission reduction targets by 2025, they will now be able to meet the targets by averaging their performance over a three-year period. Other proposals include a 1.8-billion-euro investment in creating a secure and competitive supply chain for battery raw materials and introducing trade defence instruments to make the EU automotive industry more resilient to competition from abroad.

Winfried Kretschmann, Green state premier of the state Baden-W眉rttemberg, which is home to Mercedes, Porsche, and a large supplier industry, . 鈥淲e have long campaigned for the review of the CO2 fleet limits for cars and trucks to be brought forward,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he flexibilization of penalty payments in the passenger car sector is an important signal.鈥�

In contrast, non-profit Environmental Action Germany (DUH) the plan, saying it will lead to fewer electric vehicles on roads and therefore more emissions. 鈥淚nstead of a free pass for climate-damaging combustion engines, we need instruments that make the purchase of climate-killer cars unattractive," said the lobby groups's director J眉rgen Resch.

A 27 percent reduction in sales of electric vehicles in Germany in 2024 means the country is far from hitting its 2030 targets. However, a recent survey found the number of Germans willing to buy an electric car had almost doubled.