According to a report by a working group of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Finnish government must significantly increase the number of electric cars on Finnish roads over the next decade if the goal of carbon neutrality is to be achieved by 2035.
As part of the carbon-neutral target, the government wants to halve 2005 road transport emissions by 2030.
This is an ambitious goal, as traffic currently accounts for about one-fifth of Finland’s greenhouse gas emissions, and road transport accounts for almost 94 percent of domestic transport emissions.
According to the latest forecasts, Finland’s current policy will lead to a reduction in emissions of about 3.2 million tonnes by 2030. In addition, CO2 emissions from road transport need to be further reduced by around 1.55 million tonnes in order to reach the target of halving emissions.
The final report of the working group stated that there is no simple solution to this complex problem, but that a wide range of different measures are needed.
Set a target for 700,000 electric cars, the group says
One of the most important measures recommended by the working group was to increase Finnish electric cars to 700,000 vehicles by 2030, most of which would be fully electric.
The current target is 250,000 electric cars and rechargeable hybrids by the beginning of the next decade.
This new goal could be achieved through the introduction of tax incentives, fixed-term supply subsidies or transport emissions trading schemes, the group’s report states.
The working group also recommended that the government encourage consumers and businesses to invest in low-emission technologies and fuels by setting higher costs for CO2 emissions and reforming transport taxation.
Emissions from heavy commercial transport could also be reduced by introducing subsidies for the purchase of gas and electric trucks, the working group noted.
Source: The Nordic Page
