The Association for Renewable Energy & Clean Technology (REA) has urged the Government to ban hybrids from 2030 and retain the current ZEV mandate regulations.

The REA says the Government must keep the ZEV mandate as it is

The REA responded earlier this week to the ZEV consultation and focused on the key issues of concern to members of the Recharge UK, formerly the REA EV Forum, which represents 100+ firms operating across the electric vehicle charging infrastructure value chain.

The REA response centred around four areas, including the removal of full hybrids; support for additional flexibility for the van market to lower the costs of production; extra fiscal and non-fiscal measures to increase EV adoption and provide certainty for the EV charging sector; and the need for certainty in EV sales trajectories through no extension in existing flexibilities.

The ZEV consultation asked which car technologies should remain on sale after 2030, and the REA has said that it is “crucial” that full hybrids are removed as “the CO2 emissions from HEVs have a significantly higher CO2 emissions range and ultimately their electric batteries are powered by petrol and diesel”.

The REA’s head of transport and innovation Matthew Adams said: “If the Government is serious about reaching its zero-emissions targets then it must remain steadfast in its commitments and keep the ZEV mandate as is.

“This isn’t the time to bow down to the demands of certain vehicle manufacturers and any ‘zero emission’ ambition must align with the technology that will help us get there. That’s battery electric vehicles and not full hybrid vehicles, which are essentially petrol vehicles in all but name.”

The REA also said the Government should mandate salary sacrifice schemes for medium and large businesses “to encourage the uptake of EVs in the most affordable way to do so”. And it spotlighted that government-backed, affordable loans have seen rising adoption of EVs in low-income households in other countries.

It also said the Government must urgently work with the industry to establish battery health certificates as pledged in the Labour manifesto to combat falling EV residual values, which are estimated to have dropped by 50% in the last two years.

The REA added that there was a strong incentive to continue and strengthen existing grants for vans and HGVs. With the Van Plug in Grant currently extended until 2026, it’s said the Government must proactively plan ahead and announce its extension as soon as possible.

Other areas of focus include government interventions in the charging sector to help speed up installations, bring down the cost of planning and regulation and provide confidence in the sector. It also reiterated industry calls for clearer charge point signage and called for the Rapid Charging Fund to be increased to reflect the need to include HGV charging.

The REA also said it was supportive of the Government’s decision not to provide a definition for non-zero emissions vans, recognising the limited market demand for hybrid vans to date.

And although carmakers have called for increased flexibilities in the ZEV mandate, the REA urged the Government to stand firm as it said the current time limits have been shown to be effective in encouraging a shift to a greater variety of EVs on the market and EV sales. It added that at a minimum, the Government should not make a decision on additional flexibilities until enough data is available from the 2025 and 2026 years to provide a clear projection of EV manufacturing and sales figures.

Matthew Adams commented: “An impactful ZEV mandate should always ensure that policy is implemented that maximises carbon emission savings. Increasing flexibilities will result in slower uptake of EVs, reducing the immediate impact on air quality we need to save lives today.

“By sticking to their guns, the Government will show that they’re serious about their clean transport and energy plans and this will ultimately have a huge, positive impact on air quality leading to a healthier and wealthier nation.”