By Paul Homewood
Another casualty of Net Zero:
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Vauxhall is planning to shut its Luton van-making factory in a move that puts 1,100 jobs at risk, as net zero rules force it to curtail sales of petrol vehicles.
Stellantis, the car giant behind Vauxhall, Peugeot, Fiat and Citroën, said it would focus investments on its Ellesmere Port factory in Cheshire.
It said it was taking the decision “in the context of the ZEV mandate”, referring to electric car sales targets that carmakers have criticised as overly tough.
Carlos Tavares, chief executive of Stellantis, launched a “strategic review” of its UK operations this year, saying the ZEV mandate was making Britain a “very difficult market”.
Maria Grazia Davino, the company’s former UK managing director, had warned that the company could close plants if the Government does not relax electric vehicle targets.
Car companies face heavy fines if they do not hit targets that require 22pc of their sales to come from EVs this year, rising to 80pc in 2030. Labour has also vowed to reinstate the 2030 ban on petrol cars, which had been pushed back to 2035 by Rishi Sunak.
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Stellantis have been warning for months that this would happen, saying that they were not prepared to sell petrol/diesel vehicles at a loss, because of ZEV fines.
