Rösti proposes softer CO2 rules for car importers

Switzerland’s Federal Council has proposed easing CO2 rules for car importers from 2030, a move that could reduce their penalties, SRF reports. The proposal would let importers meet emissions targets over a three-year average rather than in each calendar year.

Under the plan, an excess in one year could be offset by a shortfall in another, with penalties calculated after three years. The target for light commercial vehicles, such as vans, would rise from 90.8 to 108.7 grams of CO2 per kilometre. Requirements for heavy vehicles, including lorries, would become stricter.

The government’s report gives an example in which an importer would pay 3.4 million Swiss francs under the proposed three-year calculation, compared with 5.5 million francs if penalties were calculated annually.

The Federal Office of Energy, which is part of Energy Minister Albert Rösti’s department, said the changes reflect planned adjustments in the European Union. Switzerland’s vehicle market is closely linked to the EU market, it said.

The rules were also eased last year, when a change to the penalty calculation cut car importers’ payments from 200 million francs to about 100 million francs, SRF reported. The Federal Council estimates importers could save penalties in the mid-double-digit millions under the latest proposal. It says the effect on CO2 emissions would be small because stricter and looser requirements would largely offset each other.

Penalties are intended to encourage importers to bring lower-emission vehicles to market, so easing them could weaken that incentive. Auto-Schweiz director Thomas Rücker said the impact on penalty payments was difficult to predict because it would depend on market developments. He welcomed the proposal but said the changes should have taken effect earlier.