Report says fifty percent improvement in car efficiency is achievable
Fri 11 February 2011
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A new report commissioned by the Global Fuel Economy Initiative says that a fifty percent improvement in car fuel efficiency is possible by 2050, effectively doubling current mpg performance, providing government sets the right conditions for the market to develop.
The report - "50 by 50, Prospects and Progress" - says that the incremental technologies available to improve fuel economy are estimated to have the potential to cut average new car fuel consumption by around 50% for OECD countries, and possibly internationally, across the time frame 2005-2030. This suggests that by around 2030 average new car fuel economy in many OECD countries might be close to 4 litres/100km (25 km/l, 60 mpg,) or 90g CO2 / km.
The report has outlined the actions required to achieve the target:
• Governments must create the conditions for industry to deliver the maximum from technological innovation, while fiscal instruments need to be coherent and consistent with targets;
• Countries which have not done so should launch national fuel economy initiatives, while around the world binding fuel economy targets must be set;
• Manufacturers must set fuel economy as a top priority and be ambitious in negotiating long-term fuel economy targets with government.
David Ward, FIA Foundation director general, said: 'It is clear that the 50% global fuel economy target is achievable on a worldwide basis. But to achieve it we need global action now so that we can see significant cuts in fuel consumption for new cars during this decade and the next.'
The GFEI, is a partnership of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), International Energy Agency (IEA), International Transport Forum (ITF) and FIA Foundation It is seeking to improve global fuel economy in order to halve greenhouse gas emissions from cars.
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