“The automotive sector is certainly an economic powerhouse for Europe but we must ensure that it remains competitive.” Words by Sigrid de Vries, director general of the European Association of Car Manufacturers (Acea) for a month who took stock of the “Situation of the EU automotive industry. “The new director of ACEA addressed the various issues that characterize this troubled period influenced by a decisive push towards the energy transition, climate change, the war in Ukraine and the transformations taking place in the automotive industry.
“The automotive sector is certainly an economic powerhouse for Europe, with an annual trade surplus of 79.5 billion euros and a tax revenue of 375 billion euros for the governments of the main EU markets – explained the director general. Acea – With its huge annual investments of 59 billion euros, the sector remains the EU’s leading investor in R&D, accounting for one third of the region’s total expenditure. As we face the uncertain times ahead, we must ensure that the automotive industry remains a competitive player, well equipped to pursue the goals of zero-emission, smart and safe mobility. Thanks to this, the automotive industry is leading the transition to zero-emission mobility. There is no better testimony than the fact that the market share of battery electric cars has almost doubled, reaching around 10% in 2021 ”.
Another hot topic is the framework in which automotive manufacturers find themselves dealing with decarbonisation, market demand, regulations, technological advances, supply chain shortages, rising energy costs and competition. global. “As for the production and sales of vehicles in the EU, the picture is far from rosy, unfortunately – continues de Vries – Vehicle production suffered a further setback in 2021 (-8% ), as supply shortages continue to damage the sector. Following this slowdown in production, new vehicle sales also continued to decline as supply struggled to keep up with demand. In fact, car sales in the EU dropped to 9.7 million units in 2021, 3.3 million less than pre-Covid crisis levels ”.
In any case, the director wanted to reiterate that vehicles will not be the bottleneck in the transition to zero-emission mobility, urging a growth in charging infrastructures, resistant supply chains, even for key raw materials. Concern was then expressed about the increase in the average age of cars (12 years), trucks (14), vans (12) and buses (13) on EU roads, a phenomenon to be countered with new vehicles. cleaner and safer, provided that mobility remains accessible to all European citizens. Finally, there was also no lack of references to road safety and the changes taking place in the world of work.
“The latest data show that the EU is consolidating its position as a world leader in road safety, with a decrease of more than 17% in road accidents in the EU compared to the previous year – concluded Sigrid de Vries – However, the ‘Acea and its members will not stop until “Vision Zero” is achieved and the advanced driver assistance systems, now standard in all new vehicles, will take us even further towards this goal. Today, the automotive ecosystem as a whole employs 12.7 million people.
As a result of the double transition, however, some types of jobs are set to disappear in the medium term, while at the same time completely new skill profiles are needed for emerging jobs. The automotive industry has invested heavily in retraining and professional development programs. Acea is also co-founder of the EU Automotive Skills Alliance, which needs further impetus ”. (Maurilio Rigo)