By Vanessa Mock
BRUSSELS--The European Commission Thursday launched formal legal
proceedings against Germany over the continued use of a banned
refrigerant in new Mercedes-Benz cars made by auto maker Daimler
AG.
The EU executive has also sent a warning to Belgium, Britain and
Luxembourg, saying that they could face potential legal action for
the local sale of cars that are in breach of the new EU rule on the
refrigerants.
The move comes after the EU's long-running probe into the German
premium car maker's refusal to comply with its directive that
banned the air-conditioning refrigerant known as R134a since the
start of 2013. The German government has backed Daimler in the
case.
The EU directive is part of its legislative effort to clamp down
on emissions of greenhouse gases and their impact on climate.
Daimler has previously argued that it wants to continue using
the cheaper R134a fluid for safety reasons.
The EU's industry commissioner, AntonioTajani, said the
commission had held both political and technical meetings with
German authorities over the past weeks, but that the time had come
to find a solution. Under EU rules, countries that flout EU laws
can be taken to the EU's top courts in Luxembourg, which can impose
fines if the case of guilt.
"My job is to back European rules," Mr. Tajani told reporters in
Brussels.
Mr. Tajani added that he confident of finding a solution with
Germany. "We have many contacts with Germany on this."
Thursday, Daimler said it has followed proper procedure
regarding the refrigerant which it believes it can use in its cars,
including new models, until the end of 2016. It also uses the
refrigerant in cars sold outside the EU including the U.S.
The German auto maker said it has suggested an alternative to
Brussels to address its environmental and competition concerns
regarding its continued use of the R134a fluid.
"We submitted a proposal, via the German government, that would
compensate for the higher carbon emissions that come about when
using the [R134a] cooling fluid," said Daimler spokesman Matthias
Brock.
Mr. Tajani acknowledged that Daimler had submitted a technical
solution though the auto maker could also recall cars using the old
fluid that were sold in the first half of last year, which an EU
official says number around 113,000.
A possible recall might also involve cars sold after June last
year if the commission confirmed "indications" that Germany had
deliberately used out-of-date approvals for selling new cars to get
round the new legislation.
In its related case, the commission has sent so-called pilot
letters to Britain, Luxembourg and Belgium, seeking clarification
on whether they complied with EU rules by also using old vehicle
approvals. A pilot letter marks the first step the EU's
infringement procedure, and precedes potential legal action by the
commission.
The EU has mandated that car makers use Honeywell International
Inc.'s R1234yf which it argues is far less harmful to the
environment than the R134a fluid. The U.S. company said last month
it would spend about $300 million to build a new refrigerant
manufacturing plant in response to increasing demand overseas.
Daimler has said that the Honeywell agent is dangerously
combustible, a claim Honeywell rejects. The Commission's Tajani
said Brussels has found "no problems" with the Honeywell fluid.
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires