The chairman of Germany’s largest luxury automaker, Daimler-Benz, visited as guest speaker at a Greens party congress on Sunday to inform delegates he too wants CO2-free automobiles on the roads.
Dieter Zetsche, whose company is targeted by many Greens, stated the firm had not missed the boat constructing electrical vehicles and said it backs environment protection objectives.
However he dismissed their call to ban the sale of new vehicles powered by gas or diesel by 2030.
“A number of you probably believed ‘Letting the Daimler boss talk about transportation here is like letting (Donald) Trump discuss women’s policies’,” Zetsche joked to 800 delegates at the ecologist party’s annual congress in Muenster.
Yet Zetsche deactivated the Greens by stating he backed one of their main policies for the 2017 election, namely that the vehicle industry’s future depends on developing emission-free automobiles.
“It may shock some of you however I agree completely,” stated Zetsche.
“The decarbonization of commercial countries is needed and automakers will need to play a role,” he added. Despite the fact that need for vehicles keeps rising internationally, “we’ll have to cut the CO2 emissions of all the cars we manufacture. We’ll measure up to our climate policy obligations.”
Zetsche informed reporters at the Paris Motor Show in September that Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz and Smart brands will introduce over 10 electric cars by 2025, and zero-emission automobiles will comprise in between 15 percent and 25 percent of total Mercedes sales already.
The Greens used to be in power at the federal government from 1998 to 2005 but have been in opposition since, despite the fact that they share power in unions in 10 of Germany’s 16 federal states. The Greens are becoming a favored coalition partner after the 2017 election for the conservative Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats (SPD). Opinion polls reveal them winning 11-13 percent of the vote, mainly in third place.
They concurred at their congress in Muenster to promote a new tax on the wealthiest individuals if they enter into power.
Zetsche, among the most recognized faces of market in Germany, insisted the Greens and automakers have much in common.
