Report shows benefits to France's motorists, economy and environment from low carbon automotive shift

A new report by Cambridge Econometrics and Element Energy finds that the the transition to low carbon road transport will benefit the French economy and energy security as well as reducing motorists' costs. The report is the second in a series, the first of which - 'Fuelling Britain's Future' - was launched in collaboration with the LowCVP in London earlier in 2015.

 

The new report, launched in Paris by the European Climate Foundation and partners including Renault, Michelin and Valeo, aims to quantify the multiple economic and environmental benefits that accrue from a shift towards zero-emissions vehicles. Entitled "En route pour un transport durable" the report is a technical and macro-economic analysis focused on a mid-range scenario for deployment of low-carbon technologies in cars and vans, such as lightweight materials, hybridization, e-drive and hydrogen fuel cells. 

 

The analysis showed that by 2030 this transition pathway could generate savings for French motorists of around €590 per year, more than offsetting the average technology cost within 3 years. At the national level, this would reduce overall spending on overseas oil imports by around €5.9 billion annually. The shift in spending away from imported fuels and towards domestically produced electricity and hydrogen, and the French automotive and infrastructure value chains, would lead to a mild increase in GDP and a net additional 66,000 jobs in France. CO2 from cars and vans would be cut by 40%, and health-damaging Nitrogen oxides and particulates would be down by 72% and 92% respectively. The three reports (of which 2 are in English) can be downloaded here.

 

The findings followed 6 months of discussion and analysis between the consultants and the expert working group, which comprised: Automotive companies Renault Group, Michelin, Valeo, Saft and Eurobat; Energy and infrastructure companies Air Liquide, ERdF and ABB; materials organisations Lanxess, European Aluminium and Association Française de l’Aluminium; workers union CFDT-FGMM, and the foundations Nicolas Hulot and ECF.

 

Eighty people from industry and civil society, attended the conference at l’Atelier Renault on the Champs Elysees, where they were welcomed by the ECF’s Christoph Wolff, before being presented the findings of the study by Richard Lewney from Cambridge Econometrics. A panel debate on how automotive innovation can create jobs and provide clean air in France then got underway, bringing together Cécile Ostria (Fondation Nicolas Hulot), Eric Muret (ABB France), Philippe Portier (FGMM CFDT), Jean Philippe Hermine (Renault), Pierre-Etienne Franc (Air Liquide),Jean-Luc Di Paola-Galloni (Valeo), and Michel Derdevet (ERdF).