EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said she is determined to counter any challenges posed by the U.S. subsidies for green technologies and also expedite a law on phasing out combustion engines from 2035 that is currently been blocked by some member countries.
She said this on Sunday when she visited the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz and the German cabinet at the start of a two-day meeting near Berlin, where she also noted the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) would bring huge tax breaks for clean technologies made in the United States.
“We have discussed our answers: negotiations with the U.S. about interpreting the law, investments of our own, and speedier processes,” she told reporters.
She said the EU needed to ensure they also benefited in the batteries and battery component segments, where more talks were needed with Washington after European electric carmakers had been given access to U.S. tax advantages, adding that European legislative action within a fortnight would propose to unleash European aid and funds so far not used for the green transition at home.
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A Commission report on competitiveness, due at the same time, would help lower barriers inside the internal EU market and address shortages of specialised labour, which von der Leyen called a “brake on growth.”
She said the EU is also seeking deals with Australia, Mexico and the Latin American Mercosur bloc by the end of 2023, coming after its recent trade deals with New Zealand and Chile
Scholz and von der Leyen said that trade agreements were also being eyed with Indonesia and India.
Commenting on the delay to ending sales of new CO2-emitting cars in the EU in 2035 after Germany questioned its support for the policy, she said the issues could be resolved.
“It has to be in balance with our climate goals on which there is agreement,” she said. “The discussion is constructive.”
Story was adapted from Reuters.
