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What it is: In December 2007 the French government implemented a feebate program for the purchase of new vehicles based on their carbon emissions. The program penalizes those who buy inefficient cars with a fee, and uses the penalty funds to reward those who buy unusually efficient cars.
Understanding the emissions standards of the program can be tricky for Americans because in France most cars run on diesel, which emits less carbon per mile than petroleum does (although it emits more of other pollutants). For example, an American program with equivalent emissions standards would place a fee on the purchase of cars with a fuel economy below 35 mpg, and reward those who purchase cars with a fuel economy greater than 44.5 mpg. In France, the fee ("malus") starts at €200 and ramps up to €2600 for the least efficient cars, while the rebate ("bonus") begins at €200 and goes up to €5000 for the most efficient cars.
How it works: The bonus can be deducted directly from, and the malus can be added directly to, the sticker price of the car at the time of purchase. Most likely, car dealers would pay the malus at the time of registration and add it to the bill for the car underneath "registration costs."
Why: First and foremost, the program is designed to encourage the purchase of efficient vehicles and discourage the purchase of inefficient vehicles. Moreover, the very high rebate for cars with the extraordinary fuel economy of 97.5 mpg or better is intended to apply to future sales of electric cars, with the intention that the existence of the huge bonus will spur the development of these low-emissions vehicles
Feedback: Although France intended the bonus-malus program to be a revenue-neutral measure, according to the French paper Le Figaro, it has cost the French government $204 million so far, because sales of low-emissions vehicles have outpaced the government’s expectations, while sales of high-emissions vehicles have been below expectations.
In July, France’s environment minister said that sales of fuel-efficient vehicles were up 45 percent, while The New York Times reported that the president of Mazda Finance said that sales of cars that "fall outside the bonus categories" were down "as much as 45 percent." Not surprisingly, the average CO2 emissions from new cars sold fell by nine percent in the first eight months of the program, according to the blog Green Car Congress.
The government has already announced changes to the malus-bonus program for 2009, including a tightening of emissions standards on cars eligible for the bonus and the creation of an annual fee for the owners of high-emissions vehicles. Due to the program’s effect, the French government is considering implementing a similar system for the purchase of several household appliances, including televisions, computers, tires and some electrical products.
EE Global Connection: Francois Moisan, executive director of Strategy and Research at ADEME (France’s energy and environment agency) will speak at one of EE Global’s Transportation and Urban Planning panels. "Green growth…and energy efficiency is now on the top of the agenda…in many countries but of course especially in France," says Moisan, who will be discussing, among other things, energy-efficient mobility.
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