The Heavy Industries Ministry is not in favour of the fuel emission standards for motor vehicles finalised by the Power Ministry and has sought the intervention of the Road Ministry.
Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel has written a letter to Road Minister Oscar Fernandes saying that a “pragmatic approach from your side will usher in a new era of clean transportation in the country.”
Saying that fuel efficiency standards for cars would be implemented by the Road Ministry, Patel said, “I would request you to intervene in the matter of weight prescription, which has caused serious apprehension in the automobile industry.”
The first phase of regulations for fuel efficiency standards for passenger cars is likely to be implemented from 2017, while the second phase may come into force from 2022. There are no issues on the timeline.
The real differences are over the average weight of a car in the second stage. The Heavy Industries Ministry wants to retain the average weight of car at 1,035 kg in the second stage which, according to Patel, the Power Ministry has declined to consider.
The Heavy Industries Ministry is the nodal Ministry for the automobile industry.
The Road Ministry is to implement new fuel efficiency standards under the Motor Vehicle Rules.
The Power Ministry, through the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, is responsible for finalising fuel efficiency standards under the Energy Conservation Act. These standards have been finalised and are ready to be notified.
While proposing the 2022 fuel efficiency norms, the Bureau of Energy Efficiency has assumed that the average vehicle weight will eventually increase to 1,145 kg and has factored this in its calculation.
In this regard Patel writes: “We have had extensive consultation with the industry and all indications point to the fact that average vehicle weight may not increase at the projected rate of one per cent every year, instead, as per trends, it may actually start decreasing.”
He wants a relook into the insistence on fixing Corporate Average Kerb Weight (CAKW) at 1,145 kg for 2022.
Power Ministry stand
Responding to the new development, a senior Power Ministry official claimed that despite requests, the Heavy Industries Ministry did not provide any scientific paper to support the demand for reducing vehicle weight.
So, after discussions, “We are going ahead with our specifications,” the official told Business Line , adding that a response to an internal note by the Road Ministry had already been given.
Industry view
Auto industry insiders feel that the Government norms should be formulated in such a way that emission is calculated on a flat weight, as the average weight of vehicles would go on reducing every year.
Calculating fuel emission on basis of the average weight of all vehicles on road may not work, as the average may go up, they feel.
“For example, if small cars sell less and bigger cars, such as sport utility vehicles, sell more in a year when the calculation is done, then the average weight will always be higher. Hence, the Government should make a norm that decides on a flat average weight for the first year or the next year of introducing the norm,” an industry veteran said.
(With inputs from Siddhartha P. Saikia and S. Ronendra Singh)