Denmark gets OK for electric car program

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BRUSSELS, March 9 (UPI) -- A Danish pilot program to provide incentives for the purchase of electric cars helps European efforts to cut emission levels, the European government said.

The European Commission said it authorized $2.8 million in public funding for a program in Denmark that would provide incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles.

The EC said it wasn't likely that any single automobile manufacturer would benefit more from the program. Rather, broad incentives will reduce the dependency on fossil fuels and thereby reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

"The Danish measure is a good example of how member states can lower their carbon dioxide emission level by promoting the everyday use of zero-emission vehicles, in line with EU state aid rules and the EU 2020 objectives," Joaquin Almunia, vice president of the commission in charge of competition policy, said in a statement.

The European community aims to cut emissions by 20 percent of the 1990s levels by 2020. Reducing CO2 emissions from automobiles is one of the top objectives of the European environment policy.

The Danish measure is in force through the end of 2012. The aid covers the additional expense incurred when electric vehicles are chosen over conventionally fueled vehicles.