* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Download Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency
2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference wikipedia , lookup
Climate change mitigation wikipedia , lookup
Economics of climate change mitigation wikipedia , lookup
Public opinion on global warming wikipedia , lookup
IPCC Fourth Assessment Report wikipedia , lookup
Mitigation of global warming in Australia wikipedia , lookup
Low-carbon economy wikipedia , lookup
ASSOCIATED PRESS / RAJANISH KAKADE Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency By Cecilia Springer, Pete Ogden, Nigel Purvis, and Andreas Dahl-Joergensen June 2014 Based on analysis and collaboration with the International Council on Clean Transportation and the FIA Foundation W W W.AMERICANPROGRESS.ORG Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency By Cecilia Springer, Pete Ogden, Nigel Purvis, and Andreas Dahl-Joergensen June 2014 Based on analysis and collaboration with the International Council on Clean Transportation and the FIA Foundation Contents 1 Introduction and summary 3 Why vehicle efficiency matters 7 The policy context 10 Potential opportunities and obstacles to implementation 15 The path forward: An opportunity for U.S. global leadership 22 Recommendations and conclusion 24 Endnotes Introduction and summary The U.S. government should lead a global effort to improve vehicle efficiency through more stringent, long-term fuel-economy standards for cars and trucks. Doing so would align interests in economic growth, energy security, public health, and climate protection across a wide range of countries. Oil consumption from road transport is increasing rapidly, contributing to increased emissions, especially in developing countries.1 Many countries already have efficiency policies to manage fuel consumption, but these policies need to be scaled up and expanded across a wider range of vehicles. Fortunately, consumer and industry acceptance of vehicle-efficiency policies is growing, paving the way for world leaders to set more ambitious efficiency standards. Improved vehicle-efficiency policies are a political opportunity for world leaders. Leaders should conclude a nonbinding global agreement to increase the rate of efficiency improvement in vehicles. Leaders could strike this agreement at a number of upcoming global venues, including the U.N. Secretary-General’s 2014 Climate Summit and the 2014 G-20 Leaders Summit. An agreement among all major economies is possible but may prove challenging or move slowly due to the differences in domestic policies and regional markets between countries. In the meantime, the United States should pave the way for a global agreement on vehicle efficiency by negotiating bilateral deals with key countries such as China, India, and Mexico. Thanks to new standards adopted during the Obama administration, the United States is now the world leader in fuel-economy standards for cars and trucks,2 and it should help other countries ramp up their own vehicle-efficiency policies through bilateral agreements. Doing so would demonstrate that vehicle efficiency has many benefits for these nations—some of the world’s largest vehicle markets—and could inspire other countries to join a global agreement. 1 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency In order to improve vehicle efficiency worldwide, global leaders should pursue the following multilateral actions: • Announce a leader statement of interested countries at the U.N. SecretaryGeneral’s Climate Summit in September. • Conclude a strong G-20 leader’s statement with vehicle-efficiency goals. • Forge a multicountry alliance on vehicle efficiency within the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and other multilateral venues. Additionally, the United States should pursue bilateral agreements with the following countries: • China, to improve truck efficiency through 2025. • India, to expand efficiency standards to cover more types of vehicles and improve fuel quality. • Mexico, to harmonize efficiency standards for cars and extending standards for trucks. These agreements would demonstrate U.S. leadership while bringing significant benefits to the involved countries. At the same time, they would help pave the way for a global agreement by demonstrating the benefits of early action on vehicle efficiency, including economic growth, energy security, improved health, and reduced climate impact. 2 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Why vehicle efficiency matters Few policies neatly align interests in economic growth and sustainability across a wide range of countries. Yet, promoting vehicle efficiency3 meets both of these needs and more. Improving vehicle efficiency simultaneously benefits the economy, energy security, public health, and the climate. The economy Increased vehicle fuel efficiency saves consumers and businesses money by reducing fuel costs. Meanwhile, designing and manufacturing vehicles to meet new fuel-economy standards could spur job growth in the manufacturing and clean technology sectors. The Global Fuel Economy Initiative, or GFEI, has estimated that improved fuel-economy policies for new passenger cars4 could stimulate $3 trillion in new vehicle technology investments and create $5 trillion in global savings on fuel costs between now and 2025. This would lead to potential net savings of $2 trillion for the world’s drivers.5 The Obama administration’s new efficiency standards are a case in point. These standards will save consumers an estimated $1.7 trillion in fuel costs by 2025.6 In addition, the first phase of new U.S. fuel-efficiency standards proposed for trucks that will go into effect for 2014 through 2018 will save consumers $50 billion at the pump.7 Establishing long-term fuel-economy requirements also provides the regulatory certainty needed for automakers to invest in job-boosting efficiency technology. For example, the new U.S. fuel-economy standard for passenger cars will create an estimated 50,000 new auto manufacturing jobs, out of a total 570,000 jobs generated by 2030. These standards create jobs by saving drivers money on transportation fuel costs and allowing them to spend that money elsewhere.8 In addition, marketing more efficient, low-cost vehicles will bolster the competitiveness 3 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency of individual automakers by allowing them to attract consumers who are costconscious about the price of a car as well as its fuel. Finally, manufacturing more efficient cars can insulate automakers from gasoline price shocks—such as the steep price increases seen in 2009—which cause consumers to shift their spending away from less efficient vehicles.9 Energy security Fuel-efficiency standards can improve energy security by reducing dependence on foreign oil imports, which play an outsized role in many nations’ trade deficits. For example, oil imports accounted for more than half of India’s 2013 trade deficit.10 China—whose rapid growth has already made it the world’s largest car market—is also highly reliant on imported oil.11 The transportation sector is currently responsible for more than 40 percent of China’s oil consumption, and it will consume two-thirds of China’s oil by 2035.12 Spurred by a rapid growth in oil imports in 2000, the Chinese government began drafting its first fuel-economy standards, which were issued in 2004.13 These fuel-economy standards have reduced gasoline demand by 1 percent each year since then.14 The United States—the world’s largest importer of oil—also issued new passenger car fuel-efficiency standards in 2012 that will reduce U.S. oil consumption at an almost identical rate.15 Public health Air pollution is a serious public health issue across the world, in large part due to vehicle pollution from tailpipe emissions. The most harmful types of vehicle air pollution are particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide. Dieselpowered vehicles and trucks are the largest contributors to such emissions. The World Health Organization, or WHO, recently estimated that air pollution causes 7 million premature deaths across the world each year, 2.6 million of which are caused by outdoor air pollution.16 Air pollution causes nearly 2 million deaths per year in China alone,17 and it has shortened life expectancy by more than three years in Delhi.18 Beyond direct loss of life, other health effects of air pollution such as chronic respiratory illness damage overall welfare by reducing the productivity of the population—costing up to $300 billion per year in China.19 4 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency While air pollution is worst in the fastest-growing emerging economies, it is also a significant problem in the United States and Europe. Transportation is a major source of air pollution in the United States, causing respiratory problems and increasing the incidence of cancer and other long-term diseases.20 Paris, for example, banned half of the passenger cars from the roads in March to halt vehicle air pollution after five consecutive days of dangerous air pollution levels.21 It is important to note that vehicular air pollution depends largely on fuel quality and emission standards, not just on the fuel economy of vehicles. Thus, vehicleefficiency policies should be paired with clean fuel and emission standards that regulate the level of harmful pollutants, such as sulfur, in fuel and tailpipe emissions in order to capture the maximum benefit of new efficiency standards. Climate change The transportation sector currently accounts for one-quarter of greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions are growing at a faster rate than any other sector with a full 80 percent of that growth coming from road vehicles.22 This trend has prompted groups such as the GFEI to advocate for a global target of 50 percent reductions in new car fuel use by 2030 compared to 2005 levels and a 50 percent reduction of the global vehicle fleet by 2050.23 These targets have also been proposed as part of the new Sustainable Development Goals—the global development goals that nations are negotiating to replace the Millennium Development Goals after 2015. Reaching the 2050 goal would prevent an estimated 33 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions cumulatively between 2015 and 2050.24 This makes up nearly 3 percent of the required global solution to climate change during this period.25 Other vehicle technologies, such as fuel cell and electric cars, can also reduce emissions. But upfront investment in these technologies is currently a barrier to wider deployment. While transitioning to battery- or fuel-cell-powered vehicles will have emissions benefits in the long term, efficiency standards are the single most important solution for reducing emissions from vehicles now. In the International Energy Agency policy scenario designed to limit global warming to 2 degrees, fuel-economy measures make up nearly half of reduced demand by 2050 and are the primary climate solution prior to 2035.26 5 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Thus, emissions reductions from vehicle efficiency are a key component of national strategies to halt climate change. This holds true for the United States, where the Obama administration’s new fuel-efficiency standards will have eliminated 6 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions—more than the total U.S. emissions in 2013—by 2025.27 Taken together, the benefits of vehicle-efficiency policies for the economy, energy security, public health, and the climate make such policies attractive to many countries. Given the baseline appeal of these policies, the next section analyzes the market trends and political forces shaping progress on vehicle efficiency. 6 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency The policy context What are the market trends? The markets for both passenger vehicles and heavier freight vehicles are expanding rapidly. Most of the growth comes from emerging economies, such as India and China, which accounted for 60 percent of vehicle sales profits in 2012.28 China is and will likely remain for some time the world’s largest market for vehicle sales. While wealthier areas on China’s eastern coast could reach saturation in vehicle ownership by 2020, sales will continue to soar in less-developed interior regions, especially as China’s road infrastructure continues to expand westward.29 In other countries, auto manufacturing is expanding alongside sales. Mexico’s auto industry has grown at a rate of 6 percent each year, triple the growth rate of other manufacturing sectors there.30 At the same time, this growth in the transportation sector, largely driven by vehicle sales, is transforming the global oil market. The transportation sector accounts for some 75 percent of the growth in total projected oil demand by 2035. Oil use in the transport sector will grow five-fold over the next two decades, mostly driven by consumption in China, India, and the Middle East. China is on course to surpass the United States as the largest oil consumer by 2030, and India will take over as the largest source of oil demand growth by 2020, with an average increase in demand of 3.6 percent per year. Diesel fuel will see the greatest increase in demand, reflecting fuel preferences and the rapid growth of the freight sector in emerging economies.31 7 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency FIGURE 1 The transportation sector in Asia will drive global oil demand Projected increase in global oil demand, 2012–2035, in millions of barrels per day 87.4 Global oil demand by region 101.4 87.4 2035 2012 Global oil demand by sector 101.4 100 80 60 40 20 0 2012 2020 Bunkers, or marine and aviation fuel Oceania Europe Americas 2025 2030 Eastern Europe and Eurasia Africa Latin America Middle East Asia 2020 Other Buildings Other industries Source: International Energy Agency, "World Energy Outlook" (2013). What efficiency policies are currently in play? Domestic fuel-economy standards for cars covered about three-quarters of all cars sold globally in 2013. However, these standards represent a wide range of emissions limits and have various compliance dates, rendering many of them insufficient to substantially limit emissions or fuel consumption. Current efficiency standards are on pace to improve global fuel economy by 1.7 percent per year through 2015 and then decline to about 1 percent per year from 2016 to 2020. To put this in perspective, meeting the GFEI “50 by 50” target—which sets a goal of halving fuel use across the global passenger car fleet by 2050—will require an average 3 percent annual global improvement in fuel economy for cars.32 For trucks, efficiency standards are in a much earlier stage of development. Currently, only the United States, Canada, China, and Japan have fuel-efficiency standards for trucks, although numerous countries, including Mexico, the European Union, Brazil, and Korea are considering them.33 8 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency 2025 2030 Petrochemicals Power generation Transport 2035 In addition to fuel-economy standards for cars and trucks, the carbon intensity of the fuel plays an important role in determining overall carbon emissions. Different sources of fuel have different carbon content, so tracking of fuel carbon intensity is also an important step toward future improvements in vehicle efficiency. Currently, California and the European Union are tracking carbon intensity of fuels and deploying policies to discourage investments in high-carbon fossil fuels and to accelerate deployment in low-carbon alternatives. TABLE 1 Comparing vehicle sales and efficiency standards by country Region Share of world vehicle sales Car-efficiency standards Truck-efficiency standards 2015 2020 2015 2020 China 25% ✔ ✔ ✔ ✕ European Union 20% ✔ ✔ ✕ ✕ United States 19% ✔ ✔ ✔ ✕ Japan 7% ✔ ✔ ✔ ✕ Brazil 5% ✔ ✕ ✕ ✕ India 5% ✔ ✔ ✕ ✕ Russia 4% ✕ ✕ ✕ ✕ Canada 2% ✔ ✔ ✔ ✕ South Korea 2% ✔ ✕ ✕ ✕ Australia 1% ✕ ✕ ✕ ✕ Mexico 1% ✔ ✕ ✕ ✕ Other 9% ✔ = Policies in place ✕ = No policies Source: International Council on Clean Transportation, “Global passenger vehicle standards,” available at http://www.theicct.org/info-tools/global-passenger-vehiclestandards (last accessed May 2014). 9 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Potential opportunities and obstacles to implementation While the benefits of enhanced vehicle fuel efficiency to the economy, energy security, public health, and the climate are well documented, obstacles to implementation still remain that need to be addressed. Consumer acceptance While consumers can save money over the lifespan of a fuel-efficient vehicle compared with a standard vehicle, one potential obstacle to fuel-economy standards is consumers’ willingness to make the upfront investment in more costly vehicles. Fortunately, there is clear evidence that consumer acceptance is not a significant obstacle to the adoption of stringent fuel-economy standards in most countries. Consumer willingness to pay for fuel economy is increasing.34 In the United States, 37 percent of consumers rated fuel economy as the leading factor in their choice of their next car, compared with 17 percent who chose quality and 16 percent who chose safety.35 In India, one study found that a majority of consumers attach even greater importance to fuel economy in their vehicle-purchasing decisions than simple economics would suggest.36 Since 2006, fuel economy has consistently ranked among the top three priorities for car buyers in India.37 Moreover, consumer demand for efficient vehicles is growing. In mature markets, consumers strongly support fuel-economy standards with 85 percent of Americans supporting President Barack Obama’s latest fuel-economy standards for cars.38 In emerging economies, consumers are increasingly aware of transportation externalities such as air pollution and are demanding more information on the fuel economy of the vehicles they are considering. Effective policies can also stimulate greater consumer demand for efficient vehicles. These policies include better labeling and communication of lifecycle consumer savings, as well as economic incentives to help reduce differences in upfront cost through so-called “feebate” programs. These programs impose fees on highly 10 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency polluting vehicles, and rebates are issued for the most efficient vehicles. Following the implementation of France’s feebate program in 2008, the average vehicle size in France decreased significantly, and carbon dioxide emissions dropped 6 percent across the fleet. As a result, the French vehicle market weathered the economic downturn better than comparable markets.39 Consumers play a large role in stimulating demand for more efficient vehicles. This demand can drive investment in more efficient technologies by automakers. But the interests of the auto industry are also an important part of the vehicleefficiency equation. Industry acceptance While there is widespread recognition that fuel-efficiency improvements are essential for competitiveness in an increasingly global market, new efficiency standards will not always be met with support from the auto industry. Companies that are unable to comply with rapid fuel-economy increases or that compete in the lowest cost markets will see themselves as disadvantaged by rising fuel-economy standards. Typically, these automakers operate in emerging economies and fear having to buy expensive Western technology to comply with standards. Yet, many countries, including emerging economies, have managed to garner support from industry for fuel-efficiency standards. Developing countries have used innovative, flexible compliance mechanisms to ensure that efficiency policies are stimulating innovation in their domestic markets. The Brazilian Inovar-Auto program, for example, introduced a tax on passenger cars and light commercial vehicles but, at the same time, provides equivalent tax discounts for automakers that meet certain efficiency guidelines. The program will foster innovation and reduce fuel consumption in Brazil by about 15 percent by 2017.40 In addition, domestic automakers in emerging economies are increasingly partaking in joint ventures with Western automakers that have the capacity, technological expertise, and political will to pursue vehicle efficiency. Despite a lack of coordinated global fuel-efficiency policies, there has been some convergence in efficiency improvements across markets due to the globally interconnected supply chains of major automakers. All Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, or OECD, markets, for example, improved vehicle efficiency by between 16 percent and 18 percent—a rate of nearly 2 percent per year—between 2002 and 2011.41 Additionally, countries with a high 11 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency share of imported cars or car parts tend to adopt the most-advanced efficiency improvements within only a few years’ time.42 In contrast, there is a greater time lag or efficiency discrepancy in markets with significant domestic production primarily for the lowest-cost segments of domestic markets, such as Tata in India, Lada in Russia, and Wuling in China. These findings suggest that a staged, bilateral approach to encourage key markets to adopt efficiency standards can have a significant impact within the involved countries, as well as pave the way for a broader multilateral agreement. The competitiveness of domestic versus foreign companies plays a key role in getting political support for new standards, but the distinction between domestic and foreign is not straightforward. The auto industries in emerging economies are increasingly integrated with foreign automakers, especially automakers in the United States, Europe, and Japan that are more supportive of fuel-economy standards due to their technological advantage or experience with standards adopted in other key markets. In China, for example, most domestic automakers partner with international firms to exchange market access for technological expertise, a pattern that has persisted for several decades. During the Cultural Revolution, China halted production of cars. While promoting reform and opening in the 1980s, the Chinese government encouraged joint ventures with foreign automakers to fill the vacuum of domestic research and development capacity.43 The most prominent example of such joint ventures is the SAIC-General Motors-Wuling Automobile partnership in southwestern China, which sells nearly 1.5 million cars in China annually. SAIC-GM-Wuling is now expanding into the Indian market through other joint ventures and even full acquisitions of Indian manufacturers.44 Currently, China faces a very large technology gap between domestic-only manufacturers and companies in joint venture manufactures. As a result, joint venture manufacturers are driving fuel economy in China.45 Spurred by an increasingly connected global marketplace, the auto industry is growing progressively ambitious on fuel economy. But, as discussed above, many countries have fuel-economy standards for cars but not trucks. Yet trucks are the vehicle class with the fastest growth, and truck efficiency could yield the greatest benefits associated with reduced fuel consumption. 12 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Challenges and opportunities for trucks New standards for trucks could deliver the greatest reductions in fuel consumption globally, particularly in developing countries. Trucks use disproportionately more fuel than cars per mile traveled. While trucks are responsible for 20 percent of road transport emissions in developed countries, they can account for as much as 60 percent in developing countries.46 Although there is a clear opportunity for progress, particularly in emerging markets, many countries have standards for cars but not trucks. The United States only adopted its first fuel-efficiency standards for trucks in 2011, and just three other countries—China, Japan, and Canada—currently have their own truck standards. Even the European Union has yet to issue truck standards. Many stakeholders are eager to leverage U.S. progress to promote harmonization of standards across the world, but this will require significant political persuasion. There are clear hurdles for improving the fuel economy of trucks. First, truck manufacturers are not beholden to consumer preferences for efficient, clean vehicles. Trucks are often operated by small commercial fleets, which may lag behind private consumers and large car automakers in terms of understanding the benefits of vehicle efficiency. In addition, such fleets may have less access to capital for upfront investments in efficiency.47 Despite these obstacles, there are reasons to believe that improved standards for trucks are politically feasible. First, truck markets in emerging economies are increasingly international. Historically, local manufacturers have dominated China’s heavy-duty fleet. In the past five years, however, foreign manufacturers have penetrated China’s rapidly growing truck market by partnering with domestic manufacturers in joint ventures similar to those of the passenger car market. Conversely, Chinese truck manufacturers are now looking toward export markets.48 In India, Volvo has begun to manufacture its most efficient truck engines. Greater integration with the international market could help spur the stronger Chinese truck standards or the adoption of new standards in India. Just as with cars, truck manufacturers have an increasing sensitivity to international fuel-economy standards. 13 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Second, the proliferation of so-called green freight programs is establishing an important foundation for future standards. Such programs collect extensive data on fleets and technologies to inform best practices for improving truck efficiency. Green freight programs aim to use public-private partnerships rather than regulation to stimulate improved truck efficiency. Data sharing via these programs can help facilitate the adoption of truck standards in other countries. In many cases, this data has never been examined before. Green freight programs can accelerate adoption of efficient technologies, such as low rolling resistance tires and aerodynamic devices. These programs ensure that the data and technology needed to implement fuel-economy standards for trucks are in place. Partners that are administrating green freight programs include the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, Clean Air Asia, the Energy Foundation, the World Bank, the German International Cooperation, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA. Consumer demand and industry acceptance for efficient vehicles are increasing. The internationalized market means that even truck manufacturers—which are not directly subject to consumer demand—have more access to efficiency-conscious markets and new efficiency technologies. These trends are paving the way for stronger policies on vehicle efficiency. Now, political leadership is needed to move these policies forward. 14 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency The path forward: An opportunity for U.S. global leadership The United States is currently well positioned to lead an international effort to increase vehicle efficiency. Its recently enacted, robust fuel-economy standards and clean fuel standards make it a global leader in this area. U.S. standards for cars require improvements through 2025—the longest-term standard of any country except Canada. In addition, the administration will issue a new truck fuelefficiency standard by March 2016 that extends regulations beyond the current 2018 timeline. Now is the moment for the United States to translate this domestic leadership into internationally coordinated action. Near-term opportunities for an international deal International progress on vehicle efficiency will ultimately depend on international political will. The United States is already engaged in multilateral partnerships and dialogues that could serve as a good foundation for scaled-up action on vehicle efficiency. The international diplomatic calendar provides two key opportunities to reach an international agreement on vehicle efficiency among the key set of countries that make and buy the lion’s share of cars and trucks: the U.N. Climate Summit and the G-20 Leaders Summit. G-20 countries, for example, are responsible for 95 percent of the world’s vehicle production and 91 percent of vehicle sales. (see Figure 2) The U.N. Climate Summit—which will take place in New York in September— will bring together world leaders to discuss how to raise ambition for a 2015 global climate agreement and provide a platform for them to announce new policy commitments. If a select group of countries commit to adopting best practice standards, then the majority of global vehicle fuel consumption will be covered by stringent fuel-economy standards. (see Figure 3) An agreement could be attractive to Europe, Japan, and Canada—who are already politically committed to raising fuel-efficiency standards—as well as to India, Mexico, and China, where vehicleefficiency standards are gaining traction. 15 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Just two months later, the leaders of the world’s largest economies will convene again, this time at the G-20 Summit in Brisbane, Australia. The G-20 has demonstrated an interest in this topic in the past: It tasked the International Energy Agency with producing an impact analysis of clean energy and energy-efficiency policies, including fuel economy, at its 2011 meeting in Cannes, France. This report found that ambitious fuel-economy standards would cut fuel use and carbon emissions far more than electric vehicle deployment could over the next decade. The report also recommended that countries adopt fiscal measures to send market signals to potential purchasers of more efficient vehicles.49 Prior G-20 interest and action has paved the way for agreements on vehicle efficiency, and this year’s G-20 gathering could provide another such opportunity. FIGURE 2 A G-20 agreement would capture almost the entire global vehicle market G-20 share of global vehicle market, 2013 Number of vehicles produced Number of vehicles registered and sold South Africa United States Canada Mexico Brazil Argentina China Japan South Korea India Indonesia Russia Turkey European Union Germany France United Kingdom Italy Saudi Arabia Australia G-20 countries total 545,913 11,045,902 2,379,806 3,052,395 3,740,418 791,007 22,116,825 9,630,070 4,521,429 3,880,938 1,208,211 2,175,311 1,125,534 6,469,984 5,718,222 1,740,000 1,597,433 658,207 215,926 82,613,531 650,620 15,883,969 1,779,860 1,100,542 3,767,370 948,858 21,984,100 5,375,513 1,543,564 3,241,209 1,218,900 2,950,483 893,124 4,620,991 3,257,718 2,201,068 2,595,713 1,419,494 740,000 1,136,227 77,309,323 Rest of world World total 4,686,584 87,300,115 8,084,480 85,393,803 Number of vehicles produced 87,300,115 G-20 countries total Rest of world Number of vehicles registered and sold 85,393,803 G-20 countries total Rest of world Source: International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers, "World Motor Vehicle Production" (2013), available at http://www.oica.net/category/production-statistics; International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers, "World Motor Vehicle Sales" (2013), available at http://www.oica.net/category/sales-statistics. 16 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Potential targets and actions At the U.N. Climate Summit, the G-20 Leaders Summit, and other venues, there are a number of possible outcomes that could significantly advance vehicle-efficiency policies. In order to capture the opportunity that the Climate Summit and the G-20 meetings present, the United States and other countries should work toward the following international targets and accompanying actions. For cars, countries should commit to gradually increasing vehicle-efficiency performance. Such a commitment should be underpinned by a target or aspirational goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions per distance traveled by at least 5 percent per year. This rate of improvement is possible with known and emerging cost-effective technologies. Carbon dioxide emissions standards will apply to three-quarters of the world’s passenger car fleet sales through 2015, but these standards will only apply to one-third of the world fleet through 2020. Currently, U.S. fuel-economy standards for cars will reduce average carbon dioxide emissions at a rate of more than 4 percent per year through 2025, making these standards the most ambitious in the world. If the world adopted fuel-economy standards that encouraged improvement on a more ambitious rate and timeline, the fuel savings would be monumental. In the United States alone, a 4 percent rate of improvement for cars through 2050—alongside improved technologies—would reduce oil consumption by up to 80 percent.50 Similarly, countries should commit to gradually increasing vehicle-efficiency performance for trucks, underpinned by a target or aspirational rate of at least a 4 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions per distance traveled each year through 2050. As one of only a few countries with truck fuel-economy standards, the United States can help other countries by drawing attention to the benefits of action and encouraging nations to move forward in tandem. The United States can help spur this progress through technical assistance. Such assistance is needed to establish standards that deliver the appropriate technologies for different types of trucks, given the variety in this type of vehicle. Using its existing venues, such as the EPA’s SmartWay program, the United States can couple a push for global standards with effective technical assistance. The G-20 or the U.N. Secretary-General should also task additional work on vehicle efficiency to a technical body that could support their efforts. Building on the International Energy Agency’s, or IEA’s, 2011 report, for example, the G-20 could task IEA—its energy secretariat—to convene standard-setting agencies 17 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency and facilitate the exchange of information and proven policy approaches. The IEA could also serve the important role of reporting back to the G-20 on what progress countries are making toward their goals. An international vehicle-efficiency agreement could be supported by ongoing multilateral work as well. The Climate and Clean Air Coalition, or CCAC, for example, is a group of 38 countries, institutions, and nongovernmental organizations focused on eliminating short-lived climate pollutants, potent greenhouse gases that persist for a relatively short time in the atmosphere. Cars and trucks are a significant source of black carbon, a short-lived climate pollutant that has serious warming effects, as well as detrimental health impacts. The United States is a lead partner on the CCAC initiative for reducing pollution from trucks. A multilateral agreement with strong targets for cars and trucks, plus platforms for technical exchange, would transform the vehicle efficiency landscape. Such an agreement would provide lasting political imperative for action. However, balancing the needs of many different countries in a global venue can be difficult. Swiftly negotiating an ambitious vehicle-efficiency Clean fuels agreement has a low guarantee of success but, if negotiated, would be very high impact. The United States can help ensure Policies that encourage cleaner fuels are also the success of a global agreement by paving the way with one or critical for reducing air pollution and carbon more bilateral agreements with key countries. Bilateral agreements There are also a number of important bilateral opportunities in the area of vehicle efficiency that can be seized in the coming months. These opportunities not only have benefits unto themselves, but will also help build the foundation for a larger multilateral agreement. Several key countries have already demonstrated political will to regulate vehicle fuel economy. Some of these countries are also large vehicle markets that are responsible for significant portions of global fuel consumption. If the United States worked with just a few key countries to improve vehicle efficiency, then the majority of the world’s fuel consumption for road transport would be regulated by ambitious fuel-economy standards. (see Figure 3) Potential partners for the United States are discussed below. 18 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency emissions. Clean fuel policies typically limit the sulfur and/or carbon content of fuels. Some countries and cities—including Canada, Australia, and Korea—already have ultra-low sulfur fuel standards, and the United States has the world’s most stringent standards for sulfur emissions from trucks. However, some countries whose citizens would benefit the most from the air quality benefits of reducing sulfur—such as China, India, Brazil, and Mexico—have yet to adopt low-sulfur fuel standards. Only California and the European Union currently track the carbon intensity of fuels, but doing so is important for understanding emissions from new, unconventional fuels. These tracking efforts can be expanded internationally, and clean fuel policies can be adopted within bilateral or multilateral agreements on fuel economy. China FIGURE 3 China is devoting significant resources to reducing air pollution in and around its cities, and vehicles are a significant source of that pollution. To meet this challenge, China has sought to limit the number of cars on the road and has promoted fuel-economy standards. But more must be done. Road sector fuel consumption, 2011, kilotons of oil equivalent To that end, the United States and China are well positioned to act together on fuel efficiency. The Chinese auto industry has never been more outward facing as it strives to be a globally competitive industry, with strong joint ventures between Chinese and American automakers. At the same time, the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Transportation, and EPA are working with China on an initiative to reduce emissions from trucks and other vehicles. The current cooperation— under the umbrella of the U.S.-China Climate Change Working Group—consists of technical support on fuel quality, fuel efficiency, and green freight. Agreements between a few G-20 countries would cover a majority of global vehicle fuel consumption Rest of world United States Rest of G-20 China India Mexico European Union Source: International Council on Clean Transportation, “Global passenger vehicle standards,” available at http://www.theicct.org/info-tools/global-passenger-vehicle-standards (last accessed May 2014); The World Bank, "Road sector energy consumption (kt of oil equivalent)," available at http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IS.ROD.ENGY.KT (last accessed May 2014). The United States and China could agree to substantially improve their respective vehicle-efficiency policies for trucks over the next decade between 2015 and 2025. On the part of the United States, this would require robust, new truck standards, which the Obama administration has committed to issuing by March 2016. China could make current standards more stringent for all types of trucks and agree to step up enforcement. For cars, the United States can also provide assistance to help bring China’s passenger car fleet up to a more stringent rate of efficiency improvement through 2025. The next U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue, expected to take place in July, provides one opportunity for securing such an agreement. India India released its first-ever efficiency standards for cars in January, which are effective for new cars starting in 2017. Importantly, the new standards have support from domestic producers. In fact, Indian automakers participated in the formation of the standards and approved consultation papers throughout the process.51 19 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Canada The United States should explore the potential for cooperation in this area. For instance, India could expand its fuel-economy standards to cover not only passenger cars, as is currently the case, but also trucks and buses. India faces many challenges in achieving its fuel-economy standards due to widespread fuel mixing. Subsidized fuels in India, such as kerosene, are frequently mixed with gasoline to create cheaper mixed fuels. This can lead to higher emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. Alongside cooperation on fuel-economy standards, the United States should provide technical assistance to help track fuel quality. The EPA should work with the Indian Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board—under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas—to coordinate this effort. There are multiple bilateral tracks through which such bilateral cooperation could occur, including the U.S.-India Energy Dialogue, the U.S.-India Climate Change Dialogue, and the new Joint Working Group on Sustainable Growth. Mexico As Japan, Europe, and the United States lead on fuel-economy standards, Mexico’s auto industry is feeling strong pressure to act too. Japanese and European automakers are expanding vehicle assembly capacity in Mexico to save on labor costs and to serve the U.S. market. As a result, Mexico has developed a robust vehicle parts export market, with more than half of these exports going to the United States.52 To stay competitive and maintain market share in the United States, Mexico has already expressed a desire to harmonize its fuel-economy standards with those of the United States through a regional approach along with Canada. Mexico adopted standards in July 2013 for carbon dioxide emissions and fuel economy of new cars for 2014 to 2016 at levels that mirror previous U.S. standards. Now, the United States should work with Mexico to harmonize its policies with U.S. standards by extending this timeline and rate of improvement through 2025. Given the close trade relationship between the United States and Mexico, a bilateral agreement on car standard harmonization should occur through the Commission for Environmental Cooperation within the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. 20 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency The United States and Mexico can also work together to reduce the fuel consumption of trucks. At the 2014 North American Leaders Summit, U.S., Canadian, and Mexican leaders agreed on a call to action to adhere to “high standards” in fuel quality and efficiency for trucks.53 Given this existing political will, there is an opportunity for progress with the Mexican government. Both countries should improve their current fuel-economy standards for trucks by extending the standards through 2025. Such a commitment will require high-level support and could be announced at next year’s North American Leaders Summit. The United States, by working with these countries on bilateral agreements, can bring countries representing a significant portion of the global vehicles market into alignment on the importance of vehicle efficiency. Doing so will pave the way for a global agreement on vehicle efficiency. 21 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Recommendations and conclusion There are many opportunities in the coming months to accelerate global vehicle efficiency. Specifically, global leaders should pursue multilateral actions in a number of venues. A coalition of willing countries could spearhead a leader statement at the U.N. Secretary-General’s Climate Summit in New York in September, or at the G-20 meetings in November. Other multilateral tracks, such as the CCAC, could provide a platform for technical exchange between countries. The United States should use the strength of its domestic action on fuel economy and vehicle efficiency to lead in these venues. The United States should also use its domestic leadership on vehicle efficiency to form bilateral agreements with a number of like-minded countries that are also significant players in the vehicles market. The United States should work with China, the world’s largest vehicle market, to improve truck efficiency through 2025. The United States should also work with India on expanding efficiency standards to cover more types of vehicles, especially trucks, and to improve fuel quality. Finally, the United States should work with Mexico, a close trading partner for the U.S. auto industry, to harmonize cars standards and increase the stringency of truck standards. These bilateral agreements would cement U.S. leadership on vehicle efficiency and demonstrate to the rest of the world that some of the world’s largest automakers and vehicle markets are demanding more efficient vehicles. More efficient vehicles will help countries save on fuel costs and boost the economy, strengthen energy security, and protect public health. In addition, fuel-economy standards will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions that drive global climate change. In short, vehicle efficiency neatly aligns political priorities for nations seeking to grow their economies while promoting a healthy environment for all. 22 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency About the authors Cecilia Springer is a senior associate at Climate Advisers, where she leads projects on low-carbon transportation, sustainable finance for energy and agricultural commodities, and carbon pricing. Previously, she served as a U.S. Fulbright scholar, conducting research in Tianjin, China, on planning and transport in ecocities. Pete Ogden is a Senior Fellow and the Director of International Energy and Climate Policy at the Center for American Progress. From 2012 to 2013, he served on the White House national security staff as director for climate change and environmental policy. Previously, he served on the White House Domestic Policy Council as senior director for energy and climate change and at the U.S. State Department as chief of staff to the special envoy for climate change. Before joining the Obama administration, he was Chief of Staff of the Center for American Progress. Nigel Purvis is the founder, president, and CEO of Climate Advisers. Previously, Purvis directed U.S. environmental diplomacy in the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations, most recently as deputy assistant secretary of state for oceans, environment, and science. Currently, Purvis holds climate change and international affairs research appointments at Resources for the Future, the German Marshall Fund of the United States, and the Brookings Institution. He also serves as the executive director of the bipartisan Commission on Climate and Tropical Forests. Andreas Dahl-Joergensen is director of policy at Climate Advisers. Prior to join- ing Climate Advisers, Dahl-Joergensen was with the Norwegian government’s International Climate and Forest Initiative, where he led Norway’s landmark $1 billion partnership with Indonesia. He represented Norway in the international climate negotiations. Dahl-Joergensen previously worked for the World Bank as a carbon finance analyst overseeing several large carbon funds. 23 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency Endnotes 1 International Energy Agency, “World Energy Outlook 2013” (2013). 2 The International Council on Clean Transportation, “Global Comparison of Passenger Car and Lightcommercial Vehicle Fuel Economy/GHG Emissions Standards” (2014), available at http://www.theicct.org/sites/ default/files/info-tools/ICCT_PV_standard_Feb2014. pdf. 3 In this paper, efficiency is defined in terms of fuel consumption—or carbon emissions—per distance traveled. 4 Vehicles are typically split into two categories: lightduty vehicles and heavy-duty vehicles. Light-duty vehicles include passenger cars, minivans, SUVs, and light-commercial vehicles. Heavy-duty vehicles include medium and heavy commercial vehicles as well as buses. In this paper, for the sake of clarity, we call lightduty vehicles “cars,” and heavy-duty vehicles “trucks.” 5 Global Fuel Economy Initiative, “Fuel Economy: State of the World 2014“ (2014), available at http://www. globalfueleconomy.org/Documents/Publications/ gfei_state_of_the_world_2014.pdf. GFEI is a partnership between the U.N. Environment Programme, the International Energy Agency, FIA Foundation, the International Council on Clean Transportation, and the Institute of Transportation Studies at UC Davis and International Transport Forum. 6 The White House, “Improving the Fuel Efficiency of American Trucks” (2014), available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/finaltrucksreport. pdf. 7Ibid. 8 BlueGreen Alliance, “Gearing Up: Smart Standards Create Good Jobs Building Cleaner Cars” (2012), available at http://www.bluegreenalliance.org/news/publications/document/AutoReport_Final.pdf. 9 Driving Growth, “How Fuel Efficiency is Driving Job Growth in the U.S. Auto Industry” (2012), available at http://drivinggrowth.org/wp-content/ uploads/2012/10/How_Fuel_is_Driving_Growth_October_revise.pdf. 10 Victor Mallet, “India’s reliance on imported energy threatens long-term recovery,” The Financial Times, September 12, 2013, available at http://www.ft.com/ intl/cms/s/0/c20792e2-1b84-11e3-b678-00144feab7de. html#axzz33D7TBzyP. 11 U.S. Energy Information Administration, “China” (2014), available at http://www.eia.gov/countries/analysisbriefs/China/china.pdf. 12 International Energy Agency, “Oil and Gas Security: People’s Republic of China” (2012), available at http:// www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/China_2012.pdf. 13 Yuefu Jin and others, “Development of Fuel Consumption Standards for Chinese Light-Duty Vehicles” (2005), available at http://papers.sae.org/2005-01-0534/. 14 Hongyan H. Oliver and others, “China’s Fuel Economy Standards for Passenger Vehicles” (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 2009), available at http://belfercenter. ksg.harvard.edu/files/2009_Oliveretal_Impacts_of_Chinese_Fuel_Economy_Standards.pdf. 15 Securing America’s Future Energy, “A National Strategy for Energy Security” (2013), available at http://www. secureenergy.org/policy/national-strategy-energysecurity-2013. Passenger car standards will reduce oil consumption by 3.1 million barrels per day by 2030. Currently, the United States consumes nearly 19 million barrels per day. Assuming a constant rate of decrease, a 16 percent reduction in oil consumption over 16 years, U.S. oil consumption will decline by roughly 1 percent each year. 16 World Health Organization, “7 million premature deaths annually linked to air pollution,” Press release, March 25, 2014, available at http://www.who.int/mediacentre/ news/releases/2014/air-pollution/en/. 17 Michael Greenstone and others, “Background Material for Greenstone and Pande International New York Times Op-Ed” (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 2014), available at http://www.hks.harvard.edu/var/ ezp_site/storage/fckeditor/file/Background%20Material%20for%20Greenstone%20and%20Pande%20 Feb%202014%20Op-Ed.pdf. 18 World Health Organization, “Burden of Disease from Ambient Air Pollution for 2012” (2014), available at http://www.who.int/phe/health_topics/outdoorair/ databases/AAP_BoD_results_March2014.pdf?ua=1. 19 The World Bank and the Development Research Center of the State Council, the People’s Republic of China, “Urban China: Toward Efficient, Inclusive, and Sustainable Urbanization” (2014), available at http://www. worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/document/ EAP/China/WEB-Urban-China.pdf. 20 Union of Concerned Scientists, “Cars, Trucks, and Air Pollution,” available at http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_ vehicles/why-clean-cars/air-pollution-and-health/carstrucks-air-pollution.html (last accessed May 2014). 21 BBC News, “Paris car ban starts after pollution hits high,” March 17, 2014, available at http://www.bbc.com/ news/world-europe-26599010. 22 Stefan Nicola, “Cars Become Biggest Driver of Greenhouse-Gas Increases,” Bloomberg News, April 9, 2014, available at http://www.bloomberg.com/news/201404-08/cars-become-biggest-driver-of-greenhouse-gasincreases.html. 23 Global Fuel Economy Initiative, “Fuel Economy: State of the World 2014.” 24 Ibid. 25 This estimate was calculated by comparing annual emissions from 2015 to 2050 from the UNEP 2 degrees scenario to the estimated emissions reductions from the GFEI target from 2015 to 2050. 26 Global Fuel Economy Initiative, “Fuel Economy: State of the World 2014.” 27 The White House, “Improving the Fuel Efficiency of American Trucks.” 28 McKinsey & Company, “The road to 2020 and beyond: What’s driving the global automotive industry?” (2013), available at http://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/dotcom/client_service/automotive%20and%20 assembly/pdfs/mck_the_road_to_2020_and_beyond. ashx. 24 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency 29 Oliver and others, “China’s Fuel Economy Standards for Passenger Vehicles.” 30 Carlos Gomes, “Global Auto Report” (Scotiabank, 2014), available at http://www.gbm.scotiabank.com/English/ bns_econ/bns_auto.pdf. 31 International Energy Agency, “World Energy Outlook 2013.” 32 Global Fuel Economy Initiative, “Fuel Economy: State of the World 2014.” 33 The International Council on Clean Transportation, “Global Comparison of Passenger Car and Lightcommercial Vehicle Fuel Economy/GHG Emissions Standards.” 34 David Greene, “How Consumers Value Fuel Economy: A Literature Review” (Washington: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2010), available at http://www.epa. gov/otaq/climate/regulations/420r10008.pdf. 35 Consumer Reports, “High gas prices motivate drivers to change direction,” May 2012, available at http://www. consumerreports.org/cro/2012/05/high-gas-pricesmotivate-drivers-to-change-direction/index.htm. 36 Randy Chugh, Maureen L. Cropper, and Urvashi Narain, “The Cost of Fuel Economy in the Indian Passenger Vehicle Market.” Working Paper 16987 (National Bureau of Economic Research, 2011), available at http://www. nber.org/papers/w16987.pdf?new_window=1. 37 J.D. Power McGraw Hill Financial, “Vehicle Interior Gains Importance as Driver of Satisfaction among New-Vehicle Owners in India,” Press release, December 21, 2012, available at http://www.jdpower.com/pressreleases/2012-india-apeal-study#. 38 Consumer Federation of America, “New Research: Consumers Embrace New Fuel Economy Standard, are Purchasing More High MPG Vehicles, and Plan to Significantly Increase Fuel Efficiency in Future Purchases,” Press release, April 29, 2013, available at http://www. consumerfed.org/news/663. 39 John German and Dan Meszler, “Best Practices for Feebate Program Design and Implementation” (Washington: The International Council on Clean Transportation, 2010), available at http://www.theicct.org/sites/default/ files/publications/ICCT_feebates_may2010.pdf. 40 Global Fuel Economy Initiative, “Fuel Economy: State of the World 2014.” 41 Ibid. 42 Ibid. 43 Oliver and others, “China’s Fuel Economy Standards for Passenger Vehicles.” 44 Edward Niedermeyer, “Suicide, Scandal and China’s Auto Market Power Grab,” Bloomberg View, January 30, 2014, available at http://www.bloombergview.com/ articles/2014-01-30/suicide-scandal-and-china-s-automarket-power-grab. 45 Hui He and Jun Tu, “The New Passenger Car Fleet in China, 2010: Technology Assessment and International Comparisons” (Washington: The International Council on Clean Transportation, 2010), available at http:// www.theicct.org/sites/default/files/publications/ ICCT_New_Passenger_Car_Fleet_China_2010.pdf. 46 International Energy Agency, “World Energy Outlook 2013.” 47 Mike Roeth and others, “Barriers to the Increased Adoption of Fuel Efficiency Technologies in the North American On-Road Freight Sector” (Washington: The International Council on Clean Transportation, 2013), available at http://www.theicct.org/sites/default/files/ publications/ICCT-NACFE-CSS_Barriers_Report_Final_20130722.pdf. 48 KPMG International, “Competing in the Global Truck Industry: Emerging Markets Spotlight” (2011), available at http://www.kpmg.com/RU/en/IssuesAndInsights/ ArticlesPublications/Documents/Global%20Truck%20 Industry.pdf. 49 International Energy Agency, “G-20 Clean Energy, and Energy Efficiency Deployment and Policy Progress” (2011), available at http://www.iea.org/publications/ freepublications/publication/G20_paper.pdf. 50 National Research Council, Transitions to Alternative Vehicles and Fuels (Washington: The National Academies Press, 2013). 51 The Economic Times, “Bureau of Energy Efficiency to soon finalise fuel efficiency norms for cars,” March 5, 2012, available at http://articles.economictimes. indiatimes.com/2012-03-05/news/31124325_1_fuelefficiency-fuel-economy-standards-for-new-cars. 52 Gomes, “Global Auto Report.” 53 The White House, “FACT SHEET: Key Deliverables for the 2014 North American Leaders Summit,” Press release, February 19, 2014, available at http://www.whitehouse. gov/the-press-office/2014/02/19/fact-sheet-key-deliverables-2014-north-american-leaders-summit. 25 Center for American Progress | Accelerating Global Vehicle Efficiency The Center for American Progress is a nonpartisan research and educational institute dedicated to promoting a strong, just and free America that ensures opportunity for all. We believe that Americans are bound together by a common commitment to these values and we aspire to ensure that our national policies reflect these values. We work to find progressive and pragmatic solutions to significant domestic and international problems and develop policy proposals that foster a government that is “of the people, by the people, and for the people.” Climate Advisers is a mission-driven policy and politics shop working to deliver a strong low-carbon economy. In the United States and around the world, we create and implement large-scale, cost-effective strategies to strengthen climate action and improve lives. We work with philanthropies, think tanks, advocacy groups, international institutions, companies and governments. 1333 H STREET, NW, 10TH FLOOR, WASHINGTON, DC 20005 • TEL: 202-682-1611 • FAX: 202-682-1867 • WWW.AMERICANPROGRESS.ORG