Government should stick to 2030 ban for petrol and diesel, demands Polestar chief

Stick to 2030 ban for petrol and diesel, says Michael Lohscheller, but bring in purchase and charging incentives

Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller has called for stability from the Government over EVs (Polestar)

Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller has called on the UK government for stability after years of changing targets on the ban of cars and vans with internal combustion engines.

A government consultation on the proposed 2030 ban on petrol and diesel models is currently underway to identify what should be sold after 2030. The government has committed to the banning of petrol and diesel models from 2030, but hybrid models could still be allowed until 2035.

Lohscheller’s stance is hardly surprising. He was formally CEO of Opel and Vauxhall as well as Vietnamese car brand Vinfast, and is now running Polestar, which only makes fully electric cars. Referring to a complete ban on cars that can run on petrol or diesel in 2030, rather than continuing to allow hybrids, he said “yes, this is how it was originally being set up, right?”

“We can’t change it all the time,” said Lohscheller. “You asked me about our portfolio, our investments. I invest based on certain criteria and if they change all the time, it’s hard, if not impossible to run a business. What we need is stability.”

Polestar employs UK staff at its R&D base in Warwickshire (Polestar)

Lohscheller agrees with the UK automotive industry trade body SMMT’s suggestions how to boost the take up of EVs among private buyers and was also critical of the government’s proposed extension to the Expensive Car Supplement (ECS) which will add £410 to the annual cost of vehicle excise duty for every EV over the cost of £40,000 for five years, starting in April this year.

“I think there are a couple of things which from my point of view don’t make so much sense in the UK,” he said. “First of all is the VAT, which is proportionally higher because of the high EV price. I think it would be fair also to adjust that.

“We should also be balancing at-home charging, which is currently at 5 per cent VAT versus 20 per cent for public charging. That needs balancing to allow access to public charging for a greater amount of people.

“Then you have here the Expensive Car Supplement. I think this also needs a value adjustment. At the moment [it’s incurred] if you exceed £40,000. That’s not an expensive car in the UK, whichever way you look at it. This should go up to £60,000 for every car.”

“We also suggest a VAT cut to 10 per cent [for EVs] – just for three years, not indefinitely. We’re not asking forever. We just need a bit of stimulus for the private retail buyer. We are not having unreasonable ideas.”

The government consultation on phasing out sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 closes on February 18, with a response expected to take another 12 weeks. SMMT CEO Mike Hawes isn’t hopeful that there will be any certainty on current ZEV Mandate targets until towards the end of the year. “The year will be pretty much gone,” said Hawes.

Polestar, which has sold 35,000 cars in the UK and employs people in its R&D base in Warwickshire and its UK sales headquarters in Bicester, has recently introduced the Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 models to the UK market, joining the Polestar 2. Later this year, it will be revealing its Polestar 5 range topper, a car that has been developed in the UK.