Thirty senior executives from Europe’s trailer manufacturing industry have signed a joint declaration urging the European Commission and European Parliament to review Regulation (EU) 2024/1610, warning that its current approach could increase emissions while undermining the sector’s competitiveness.
The declaration was signed during a meeting in Koningshooikt, near Lier, Belgium, in the presence of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) Kris Van Dijck of Belgium and Jens Gieseke of Germany.
While the manufacturers reaffirmed their support for the European Union’s decarbonisation goals, they argued that the regulation requires significant revision before it is fully implemented.
At the heart of the industry’s concerns is the extension of CO₂ regulations to trailers through the Vehicle Energy Consumption Calculation Tool (VECTO). Although trailers do not produce direct CO₂ emissions, manufacturers are assessed against simulated emissions based on standardised reference loads and operating cycles.
According to the signatories, the methodology fails to reflect the wide range of trailer applications, varying payload requirements and the growing use of zero-emission tractor units across European fleets.
The manufacturers argue that the current framework could encourage lighter trailer designs that reduce payload capacity in order to meet regulatory targets. They warn this could lead to more vehicle movements being required to transport the same volume of freight, ultimately increasing overall CO₂ emissions rather than reducing them.
The industry also highlighted the potential financial impact of the CO₂ regulations. From 2030, manufacturers that exceed their emissions targets could face penalties of €4,250 per gCO₂/tkm above the prescribed limit for every registered vehicle. According to the declaration, these fines could run into millions of euros each year and place around 70,000 jobs across Europe’s trailer manufacturing sector at risk.
The declaration sets out five recommendations for policymakers. The manufacturers are calling for the Article 15 review to be brought forward from 2027 to 2026, alongside the introduction of more achievable fleet targets from 2030. They also want fleet targets to be phased in from 1 July 2030 to minimise market disruption, a moratorium on financial penalties while both the methodology and penalty structure are reviewed, revisions to the VECTO methodology so it better reflects real-world trailer operations and the increasing deployment of zero-emission tractor units, and a reassessment of the proposed credit-and-debit system, which they argue cannot operate effectively because enabling trailer technologies will not be available at sufficient scale within the required timeframe.
Speaking at the event, MEP Kris Van Dijck said decarbonisation should not come at the expense of European manufacturing.
He said climate policy must be based on practical, achievable technologies that deliver genuine emissions reductions while safeguarding industrial competitiveness.
MEP Jens Gieseke said the trailer industry remained committed to supporting the green transition but argued the regulatory targets must be technically achievable. He called for an evidence-based review during 2026 rather than waiting until the regulation’s scheduled review in 2027.
Representing the German coalition of eight leading European trailer manufacturers, spokesman Gero Schulze Isfort said the unprecedented collaboration between 30 competing manufacturers demonstrated the seriousness of the industry’s concerns.
He said the sector was seeking regulations that genuinely reduce emissions rather than penalising manufacturers through what it considers to be a flawed simulation methodology.
The manufacturers are now calling on European policymakers to begin the review process this year, arguing that earlier action would provide greater regulatory certainty while supporting both the EU’s emissions reduction ambitions and the long-term competitiveness of Europe’s trailer manufacturing industry.
