France will gradually align taxes on diesel and petrol and offer incentives to encourage car consumers to give up their diesel and petrol powered cars for electric cars like the Renault Zoe. Starting in April, the French government will pay a bonus of as much as 10,000 euros (USD11,422) to car consumers who buy an electric car to replace an old diesel powered vehicle as the old diesel cars that are more than 13 years old have no particle filters. Measures are being taken against older types of diesel technology cars that have high pollution.
Renault who is one of the biggest manufacturesr of electric driven cars welcomed the EV incentives as a 10,000-euro rebate would reduce the price of Renault’s Zoe subcompact EV to 12,400 euros from 22,400 euros. The price of the Nissan Leaf would fall to 14,390 euros from 18,090 euros. The two models are France’s best-selling passenger car EVs. French sales of the Zoe were 5,970 last year and Leaf sales were 1,604. Renault said the final terms of the rebate program have yet to be finalized.
French taxes are lower on diesel than on gasoline, which has encouraged consumers to buy cars that run on the cheaper fuel. Environmental groups have urged the government to align the levies while French carmakers have said measures should encourage motorists to replace old vehicles with newer models.
Paris and other big French cities regularly issue warnings about air pollution caused in part by particulates from diesel fumes. Alerts in recent years have reignited debate over the taxes. Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo last month announced measures aimed at phasing out diesel vehicles in the city by about 2020.
64% of new cars sold last year in France to consumers ran on diesel compared with a high reached two years earlier of 73%, according to the country’s car manufacturers’ association CCFA. In countries such as Germany and the UK with different tax regimes, the proportion of diesel cars was 47% and 50% respectively in 2013. Overall, about 80% of French motorists drive diesel-powered cars.
