Ursula Kicks EU Car Industry into Gear Making Affordable Small BEVs - CleanTechnica

In her 2025 State of the European Union speech, Ursula von der Leyen emphasized the need for Europe to develop affordable, small battery electric vehicles (BEVs) to meet both domestic demand and global market growth. She announced a forthcoming "Small Affordable Cars" initiative aimed at fostering the production of clean, efficient, lightweight, and economically accessible electric cars built entirely within Europe, leveraging European supply chains. This move is intended to prevent China and other global competitors from dominating the emerging electric vehicle market and to ensure that Europe remains a key player in the future of automotive manufacturing. The article highlights that this initiative marks a shift in EU industrial policy, which historically focused on agriculture and limited interference in national industrial strategies to maintain a level playing field within the union. Previously, the EU relied on tariffs and regulations to protect its market, such as taxing Chinese BEVs to offset subsidies. However, the new approach signals a more proactive European-wide industrial policy, starting with defense and now extending to strategic sectors like automotive