The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) has announced a new industry-led reporting system, the FCAI CO2 Emissions Standard, which sets out industry and brand CO2 emissions reduction targets at 2030.
The new Standard is a long-term objective which recognises that different brands will follow different paths towards the target depending on their individual model cycles. For this reason, and to contribute to Australia’s commitment to the Paris agreement, the Standard is set across a ten-year period to 2030.
Significantly, the industry acknowledges the pathway to the new target may not be without impediment and it is fully expected that individual manufacturers may not always record annual improvement. In this instance, the end goal of meeting the 2030 target remains the key focus.
An industry driven scheme, the FCAI Standard aligns with manufacturers’ traditional position of bringing the best possible products, with the latest safety and drive-train technologies, to the Australian market.
Tony Weber, chief executive of the FCAI, said the initiative is supported by more than 40 major automotive brands and aims to provide certainty to manufacturers to enable them to confidently plan future product for the Australian market.
“The intent behind this new Standard is to ensure automotive manufacturers can continue to do what they do best – and that is to bring the latest, safest, and most fuel-efficient vehicles to the Australian market.
“The FCAI strongly supports a comprehensive approach to addressing motor vehicle emissions that includes fuel quality standards, the introduction of Euro 6 and the introduction of a challenging but realistic, achievable and market relevant CO2 standard.
“In this context, the FCAI Standard has been based on internationally mandated practices, including those from Europe and the USA, while still recognising the unique characteristics of the Australian market,” Weber said.