Germany Ends EV Subsidies

Germany has made a sudden decision to terminate incentives for purchasing electric vehicles, a move that could deal a severe blow to the struggling German auto industry already grappling with environmental transitions, experts warned on Sunday.

The incentives for buying electric cars have fallen victim to the financial crisis following the financial earthquake triggered by the German Constitutional Court in November.

The court ruled against the reallocation of unutilized credits during the pandemic for green investments and industry support.

Germany's Ministry of Economy announced on Saturday that no more applications would be accepted after Sunday.

A spokesperson for the ministry acknowledged that this removal created a "regrettable situation" for consumers who were hoping to benefit from the incentive when purchasing electric cars.

However, the spokesperson stated that this decision was necessary "because there is no longer enough funds available to consider applications received after Sunday."

According to automotive research center analyst Ferdinand Dudenhofer, this decision could have dire consequences.

He told the Rheinische Post, "The competitiveness of (automobile) manufacturers will be severely affected now."

The Handelsblatt economic newspaper cautioned that the cancellation of the incentive jeopardizes Germany's goal of having 15 million electric cars on the roads by 2030.

The newspaper noted, "This goal was already considered highly unrealistic, and now it seems entirely illusory."

Since 2016, a total of 10 billion euros has been allocated for approximately 2.1 million electric cars, according to the German Ministry of Economy.