BMW has spoken out against short-term government-funded measures to boost Germany’s ailing automotive sector, instead advocating long-term measures to increase consumer acceptance of electric vehicles.
“The German automotive sector has no need for a short-term, market-disrupting one-hit wonder,” the Munich-based carmaker said on Monday ahead of an industry summit later in the day.
Measures supported by BMW include full nationwide coverage of charging points, both in public places and at homes, and cheap electricity.
“If the costs per kilometre driven on electricity are higher than with petrol or diesel, then many customers lack an important incentive to drive electric,” the report said.
German Economics Minister Robert Habeck and the automotive sector will discuss the crisis facing the sector in a video conference on Monday afternoon.
In addition to the executives of Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes, representatives of the German trade association for the automotive industry (VDA) and the influential trade union IG Metall are also present.
There have been calls for measures to boost demand for electric cars, in line with government policy to phase out the internal combustion engine. However, it is not clear whether specific decisions will be made at the summit.
