At the Irish launch of the new Nissan Juke today, James McCarthy, CEO of Nissan Ireland, stated that vested interests within the motor industry are undermining the Government's efforts to put nearly a million electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2030. He said: "This target is wholly achievable, and the Government should not listen to commentators with vested interests and who are out of step with the EV revolution and consumer shift towards electric driving."
"The Government Climate Action Plan intends to reduce transport CO2 emission levels by approximately five million tonnes by 2030 to ensure that Ireland meets its decarbonisation commitments under the Paris Agreement. A key part of that objective is putting 840,000 EVs and 100,000 electric vans onto Irish roads by 2030. The Irish motor industry needs to accept that reality and to get behind the strategy rather than rejecting it because they have not got their house in order."
It's thought that McCarthy is obliquely referring to Toyota Ireland, which has no electric car on sale as yet, among others. He continues: "The inconvenient truth is that, unlike Nissan, the majority of car manufacturers do not have the engines to sell to buyers switching to electric driving. We should not be surprised that these same manufacturers are now saying that the Government's target is unattainable and unrealistic. We only have to look to Norway to see what can be achieved when the right infrastructure and supports are put into place. The supply of cars was not a barrier to Norway exceeding their targets."
"Belly-aching" protectionism?
"This kind of belly-aching is the worst form of protectionism. Time has caught up with these manufacturers and they need to move on from their default position," said McCarthy before reinforcing Nissan's support for the Government's target: "Nissan stands full square behind the Government target. The fact that there are 225,000 first registrations in Ireland each year provides compelling evidence to prove that the Government target is achievable."
Meet us half way...
Nonetheless, Nissans wants the Government to meet the motor industry half way: "It is glaringly obvious that the Government needs to prioritise its investment in the public charging infrastructure if it is to achieve the targets it has set. Countries like Norway have already proven that investment in the charging infrastructure is the most effective way to achieve EV adoption. Unfortunately, there has been little or no progress with Ireland's public charging infrastructure since it was first rolled out a decade ago. This is something that needs to be immediately addressed if the Government is to succeed in reaching its target."
McCarthy's finishing statement suggests the industry gets on with trying to achieve the target rather than talking about how it's not possible: "In the past we have seen successive governments announce very ambitious targets without ever doing anything to achieve them. We cannot wait another year or ten years. The Government and the naysayers in the car industry need to consider the facts, to stop talking about whether EV targets are possible and to get on with the task of working together to achieve them."