Currently reading: Renault opens up CO2 emissions pool to other manufacturers

French firm is on track to comfortably meet 2020 CO2 targets so looks to profit from the margin

Renault is on track to meet its CO2 fleet emissions targets for 2020 so is offering other manufacturers the opportunity to join its CO2 pool, according to reports. 

Automotive industry researcher Matthias Schmidt has obtained documents from the European Commission that show Renault filing a "declaration of interest to form Open Pools pursuant to Article 6(5) of Regulation (EU) 2019/631 (passenger cars)".

Simply put, the filing means Renault likely has met its targets by a significant margin and can now sell emissions credits to other manufacturers that wouldn't otherwise meet their own targets, like Tesla does with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

According to the most recent edition of the European Electric Car Report, Renault had the highest amount of electric vehicle (EV) registrations in Western Europe, selling 51,200 throughout August. 

Interested parties have until 18 November 2020 to register their interest directly with Renault and demonstrate that their participation won't cause Renault to exceed its targets or that they can pay the fine for any excess. 

Renault had previously planned to share its pool with Alliance partners Mitsubishi and Nissan in line with an agreement outlined early this year, with the three firms being treated as a single entity for the purposes of EU emission targets. 

There's no word yet on why Renault appears to be operating alone, nor on which manufacturers are in line to take advantage of its offer. Schmidt suggests Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler as a likely candidate, given that it already has a strategic agreement in place with Renault and is on track to miss its CO2 targets for 2020. 

Autocar has reached out to Renault for an official comment. 

It has also been recently reported that MG parent company SAIC has joined Volkswagen's emissions pool in order to help the German manufacturer meet its targets.

The Chinese firm will remain in the pool until the end of 2022, likely with the intention of its HS plug-in hybrid, ZS EV and 5 EV sales making up for a small shortfall in Wolfsburg's electrified vehicle sales. 

Read more

Inside the industry: How selling emissions credits helps Tesla grow​

Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi agree new Alliance deal

EU pushes for tougher 2030 CO2 targets for car industry​

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Felix Page

Felix Page
Title: Deputy editor

Felix is Autocar's deputy editor, responsible for leading the brand's agenda-shaping coverage across all facets of the global automotive industry - both in print and online.

He has interviewed the most powerful and widely respected people in motoring, covered the reveals and launches of today's most important cars, and broken some of the biggest automotive stories of the last few years. 

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Vee_8 13 October 2020

Why shouldn't VW be paying

Why shouldn't VW be paying all the fines for setting emissions as far back as they did? 

si73 12 October 2020

All seems like a con this

All seems like a con this selling your emissions allowance. Great for Renault, and well done them, but for others to have to buy into an allowance to compensate for their poor performance and being allowed, seems wrong to me.
405line 12 October 2020

Why not

just limit the amount of cars that can be sold by a manufacturer dependant on their own technical efforts, that way the manufacturers would have a clear target to aim for and improving it would allow you to sell "more cars"...but that wouldn't allow for dodginess and allow the "car mafia" to cut profitable "virtual deals" and keep the gravy train going. The diesel skank got found out and this is what he have as a replacement skank.