France is preparing to launch a new electric vehicle subsidy program that would give people the ability to lease an EV for €100 ($100) per month. Budget Minister Gabriel Attal announced the plan over the weekend on the country’s LCI news channel, . “We know that for many French [EVs] remain very expensive,” he said, adding that the government was working to figure out how quickly it could implement the measure.
Under a subsidy scheme that’s similar to the one introduced by the US , French car buyers can currently receive as much as off electric vehicles that cost less than €47,000. Consumers can also take advantage of a federal trade-in program to get money for their old combustion-engine cars. Despite those incentives, EVs only accounted for 12 percent of new vehicle sales in France during the first seven months of 2022.
For context, France is significantly behind on that front compared to countries like Norway. Last year, battery-electric and hybrid vehicles made up of all new car sales within the Nordic country. Much of what’s driving adoption there is a subsidy scheme that allows car buyers to avoid taxes that are found on internal combustion engine cars.
Attal’s announcement follows months of extremely hot weather across France as Europe and the world feel the brunt of worsening climate change. After enduring multiple heatwaves throughout June and July, parts of Paris saw temperatures rise to (nearly 100 Fahrenheit) earlier this month.
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