While the government wishes to tighten the conditions of access to the ecological bonus, but also its amount, certain models could soon be excluded from the device. This is particularly the case of the Dacia Spring or the Tesla Model 3 and some Model Y, but also Chinese electric cars which are arriving en masse on the European market.
For several years, France and many European countries have offered a financial boost to encourage motorists to go electric. If the amount of the ecological bonus is currently capped at 6,000 euros, it will be lowered at the end of the year. If this was scheduled for July 1, the government has indeed decided to extend the maximum aid, while making some changes. Indeed, the boost of 6,000 euros for certain plug-in hybrids has notably been removed.
A hardened bonus
But as sales of electric cars increase in Europe, some countries have decided to close the floodgates and reduce aid. This is particularly the case of Germany, which plans to lower the amount of the bonus gradually, until it is abolished for cars over 45,000 euros in 2024. For its part, the United Kingdom has as for him quite simply decided to put an end to it last June. While France does not yet plan to follow this direction, it also wants to reduce tax incentives, and therefore spending. For this, the bonus could be more restricted.
Indeed, the Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire spoke on Monday during the presentation of the finance bill (PLF). On this occasion, the latter confirmed the reduction of the ecological bonus to 5,000 euros from next year. This was already planned, while this planing was initially to take place in July. But this is not the only announcement that was made during this speech. Indeed, the government also wishes to tighten the allocation of the ecological bonus, which is already no longer accessible to cars over 60,000 euros.
The Dacia Spring in danger
Indeed, for the very first time, the Minister of the Economy plans to reserve this financial aid for vehicles produced in Europe. An idea which, to tell the truth, did not come from nowhere, since the United States has already adopted this measure deemed too protectionist by European manufacturers. The cars must then imperatively be manufactured on American territory to be eligible for the ecological bonus. From 2023, the battery and “critical” minerals will also have to be sourced locally, whether through extraction or recycling.
For his part, Bruno Le Maire said in his speech: “ Don’t we have to reserve the ecological bonus for models produced in France or Europe ? We have to ask ourselves“. What suggest that such a measure would be quite possible with us.
Dacia, Tesla and Chinese manufacturers could suffer
If this measure sees the light of day, it could then penalize very strongly the Chinese manufacturers who are going to attack Europe this year, including MG, which has just unveiled its MG4 displayed at an unbeatable price. If the Peugeot e-208, manufactured in Slovakia should therefore be preserved, this will not be the case for the Dacia Spring, which could then lose its financial boost.
Indeed, the low-cost electric city car is assembled in China, at the DongFeng factory in Shiyan. Currently, this is displayed from 19,800 euros and is eligible for the ecological bonus of 5,346 euros, which brings it down to just 14,454 euros and makes it one of the cheapest electric cars on the French market. But the city car will not be the only one concerned.
Tesla too could have the same problem, while all its models are made in China and the United States. Only the Model Y Performance is indeed assembled within the Berlin factory. The Propulsion version should also be manufactured there, which should allow the electric SUV to retain its ecological bonus in some cases.
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