France has revised the rules for EV cash incentives, favouring vehicles made in France and Europe over those manufactured in China, as per a government list of eligible car types, Reuters reported. The latest rules include new criteria covering the amount of carbon emitted in the manufacturing of an electric vehicle (EV). Around 65% of electric cars sold in France will be eligible for the scheme.
Stellantis and Renault dominate
The list of models eligible for EV cash incentives includes 24 produced by Franco-Italian group Stellantis and five by French carmaker Renault. Tesla Model Y will be eligible too but not the Model 3 is out of the list. President Emmanuel Macron’s government has been supporting in making French and European-made EVs more affordable for domestic consumers as compared to cheaper vehicles produced in China.
Reducing Chinese supremacy
In the first half of 2023, the average retail price of an EV in Europe was more than EUR 65,000 (USD 71,000) compared with just over EUR 31,000 in China, according to research by Jato Dynamics. The French already government offered buyers a cash incentive of between EUR 5,000 and 7,000 to get more electric cars on the road (a total cost of EUR 1 billion (USD 1.1 billion) per year). However, a third of all incentives went to consumers buying EVs made in China because of absence of cheap European-made EVs. The trend has helped spur a surge in imports and a growing competitive gap with domestic producers.
Reducing carbon footprint
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire hailed what he called the new rules’ incentive for automakers to reduce their carbon footprint. “We will no longer be subsidising car production that emits too much CO2,” he said in a statement. Since China’s auto industry relies heavily on coal-generated electricity, many Chinese-made EVs will henceforth not qualify for EV cash incentives in France.