The government “snatches” 60 million from the 2024 funds for incentives for the purchase of electric cars, which has yet to be launched, and 20 million from the charging station bonus. Even worse next year, with 250 million less than initially allocated.
They were intended to encourage the purchase of electric and hybrid cars and charging stations. In all, 400 million have already been allocated by the previous Draghi government to “push” motorists to replace the most polluting models with zero-emission cars.
Thickly “snatches” the incentives for electric cars to divert them to the South
Instead, the executive led by Giorgia Meloni thought better of it divert them to the Cohesion decree, published yesterday in the Official Journal and in force today. In fact, with this provision the Minister for the South, Raffaele Fitto has reviewed the projects included in the Pnrr intended to reduce the “territorial gap” from which the regions of Southern Italy suffer.
It could be defined as a “snatch” for good purposes. But in reality, upon closer inspection, it highlights the priorities of the Meloni government sacrifices politics in favor of decarbonisation of the economy.
Precisely at the moment in which – as the market data of the last two months have revealed – sales of “green” cars have collapsed due to the delays of the new incentive decree announced by the Minister of Business Adolfo Urso at the beginning of February.
But it does not mean that we are faced with a problem of scarce resources to be divided between the various government measures. Let’s see in detail where this suspicion comes from and what exactly happened starting from the numbers.
Article 37 of the Cohesion Decree provides that the measure be financed for 2024 (also) with 130 million unused from the previous plan launched by the Draghi government for vehicles in the M1, N1 and N2 categories (passenger cars and vans) and by another 20 million intended to increase the number of columns for domestic electric charging.
The same will happen for 2025when the projects for Southern Italy will be successful of an additional 250 million which were originally always intended for “green” cars.
For 2024 the figure available was originally 793 milliondivided as follows:
– At electric cars (with emissions between 0-20 g/km of Co2, category M1) 240 million euros;
– For them plug-in hybrid cars (with emissions between 21-60 g/km of Co2, category M1) 150 million euros;
– At mild hybrid, full hybrid and thermal cars (with emissions between 61-135 g/km of Co2, category M1) 403 million euros.
Two-faced government: in Brussels it looks to the future, in Rome to the past
So far the cold numbers. Then there is the political aspect. The choice comes a few days after controversy raised by the minister of Transport Matteo Salvini towards incentives for electric cars.
According to Salvini, these are funds that end up favor Chinese car manufacturers, market leader in the sector. It is not the first time that the secretary of the League has campaigned against the car transition. And not always using the “invasion” of Chinese models as a justification. Usually he takes issue directly with Brussels’ choices on the decarbonisation of the economy.
Reason for which, it shouldn’t be surprising the government’s decision to divert part of the funds intended for the green replacement of the car fleet, allocating them elsewhere. As Vaielettrico has reported on several occasions, the Meloni government has international contexts says he wants the energy transition and espouses the objectives of fighting climate change (as he just did at Energy G7 in Turin).
But when the spotlight goes off, in internal politics they decide to do something else entirely. Looking at theeconomy of the past and not to that of the future towards which the whole world is turning. Or maybe at elections next month.
– Subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube channel –
