A top executive from Ford has raised concerns that environmental objectives will lead to increased prices for petrol cars as the shift towards electric vehicles progresses.
Introduced at the beginning of the year, the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate aims to encourage the sale of electric vehicles from major car manufacturers. Starting from the end of 2024, automakers must ensure that at least 22% of their total sales come from electric vehicles, or face a fine of £15,000 per vehicle exceeding the target.
These sales targets will gradually rise in the coming years, with the aim of reaching 80% of cars and 70% of vans by the end of the decade, and 100% of vehicles by 2035.
However, a senior Ford executive is now urging for a thorough investigation of these measures to ensure that brands have the opportunity to transition to electric vehicles without burdening consumers with higher costs for new vehicles.
Martin Sander, who heads Ford's European electric car division, highlighted the potential threat that environmental targets, such as the ZEV mandate, pose to both manufacturers and consumers.
He said: "It’s really important for politicians to monitor what is going on and that the ZEV targets, this year, next year, going forward, are roughly in line with consumer demand.
“This is what we need. You cannot push vehicles into the market against demand," he told the Financial Times Future of the Car Summit.
Similar models to the ZEV mandate are utilised globally, including in California, the United States, and British Columbia in Canada.
Sander claimed that Ford is confident in meeting the net-zero goals with its ongoing production of electric vehicles, but clarified that the company would not resort to paying penalties. Ford currently offers several electric vehicle models on the market, including the all-electric Explorer, the Mustang Mach-E, and the E-Transit, alongside the popular Ford Puma hybrid.
He added: "The only alternative is to take our shipments of ICE vehicles to the UK down and sell them somewhere else.
“I don’t know if consumers will like seeing the ICE prices going up.”
Recent research from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) revealed a slight decrease in the sale of petrol vehicles in the UK in April compared to the previous year, although petrol cars still maintain the majority market share. Meanwhile, the market share of battery electric vehicles has seen a modest increase, prompting calls from experts to implement various measures to bolster the demand for electric vehicles. These measures include reducing VAT on public chargers, expanding access to charging points nationwide, and eliminating the "expensive car supplement" on newly-registered electric vehicles.
