Overview
- The Technische Universität München released a white paper after a systematic review of 19 studies and 47 scenarios that finds battery‑electric vehicles reduce lifecycle CO2 by roughly 41 percent on average compared with internal‑combustion cars.
- TUM argues that EU Regulation 2019/631 measures only tailpipe emissions and therefore leaves out CO2 embedded in steel and aluminium, emissions from battery mineral supply chains, the energy used in manufacturing, and recycling impacts.
- German politicians including Markus Söder and industry groups such as the VDA seized on the study over the weekend to press for technology‑neutral rules and lifecycle accounting instead of a de facto ban on combustion engines.
- The university warns that keeping a tailpipe‑only approach could derail the EU's 2030 net greenhouse‑gas target and misdirect investment in Europe’s auto industry, a risk underscored in coverage that cited a Fraunhofer estimate of large job losses under a rapid phase‑out.
- TUM will present the white paper in Munich this week and is urging that lifecycle metrics be considered in Brussels ahead of the November Automobil‑Paket votes, a proposal that experts say will trigger detailed debate over LCA methods and political pushback.