It’s still early to declare victory (or to complain, depending on your point of view), but juicy news is coming from the EU on Euro 7 and biofuels which could upset the plans already established on the future of mobility in Europe. The Commission for Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) of the European Union has indeed approved a proposal by the Hon. Massimiliano Salini of Forza Italia-EPP who legitimizes biofuels as CO2 neutral fuels, creating the conditions to save the thermal engine even after the fateful date of 2035, and aims to postpone the entry into force of the Euro7 standard. Let’s see in detail what it is.

THE EU’S ITRE COMMISSION INCLUDES BIOFUELS AS CO2NEUTRAL FUELS

“Today, in the ITRE Commission, we have created a very important and extremely useful regulatory precedent capable of saving the internal combustion engineexplained the Hon. Salini announces the latest news. “With the Euro 7 file, rid of unrealistic objectives, we have in fact obtained theapproval of the first European definition of ‘CO2 neutral fuels‘, which also includes i biofuels (biofuels, editor’s note) requested by Italy alongside e-fuels obtained from Germany”.

Concretely, for the first time, an EU institution, giving the green light to a proposal which also appeared in the text of Euro 7 in the Committee on the Environment (to be voted on in September 2023), introduced a clear reference to biofuels in the more generic definition of CO₂ neutral fueland this definition cannot fail to be taken into account by the European Commission when it has to draw up the announced delegated acts (the “recital 11”) on the new CO2 standards for cars.

WHAT ARE CO2 NEUTRAL FUELS?

In essence, the ITRE Commission established that by defining “CO2 neutral fuels‘ indicates a “renewable and/or synthetic fuel as defined by Directive 2018/2001, including biofuelbiogas, biomass fuel, liquid and gaseous renewable transport fuel of non-biological origin (RFNBO) or a recycled carbon fuel (RCF)”. That is, these are liquids for which “emissions can be assumed as equal to zero“why carbon dioxide”incorporated into the chemical composition of the fuel used is of biogenic originor its release into the atmosphere has been avoided.

#EURO7 type-approval of motor vehicles – opinion of the @MaxSalini For @EP_Environment adopted by 46 votes to 12, 14 abstentions. AC 1 and 2 adopted.

— ITRE committee press (@EP_Industrie) July 19, 2023

EURO 7: THE TEXT APPROVED IN THE EUROPEAN INDUSTRY COMMISSION REQUESTS A 5-YEAR POSTPONEMENT

“The never-before-seen description of CO₂-neutral fuel“, added Salini, “reintroduces technological neutrality and opens uplarge-scale registration internal combustion engines powered by renewable or synthetic fuels even after 2035. Moreover, thanks to timely negotiations, we have obtained that the same definition of “CO2 neutral fuels” is included in the text concerning 7 euroswhich will be discussed in September”.

In this respect, the text approved by the ITRE Commission provides postpone the entry into force of Euro 7 for up to 5 years, aligns it with UN tire standards, maintains Euro 6 test conditions for heavy vehicles and excludes those considered “unrealistic” for light vehicles. Finally, it modifies the emission limits for vans, from 35 to 44 kW/t. “On Euro 7, today’s vote remedies the regulatory mess of the Commission’s inadmissible proposal, which would impose unsustainable targets to manufacturers against negligible environmental benefits“, concluded Salini. A position, the latter however shared by ACEA, the European association of car manufacturers.