Fear of headwinds Federal Office of Energy hides electric car study
A study commissioned by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy clearly shows that switching from petrol to electric cars almost always results in CO₂ savings. But instead of publishing the results, the office let the study disappear into a drawer - for fear of criticism.
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- A study commissioned by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy concludes that in over 90% of cases, an immediate switch from a combustion engine car to an electric car saves CO₂.
- Despite the clear scientific results, the office decided not to publish the study for fear of negative political and media reactions.
- This behavior jeopardizes a fact-based climate policy.
The question was simple, the answer clear - and yet it was withheld from the public for a long time. The Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) wanted to have a scientific study carried out in 2022 to determine when it makes sense from a climate perspective to replace a petrol or diesel car with an electric vehicle.
The reason: many people assume that it is better to drive their old car for as long as possible in order to avoid CO₂ emissions from production and scrapping.
In the fall of 2024, the commissioned research office Infras found a clear answer: in over 90 percent of cases, immediately replacing a conventional vehicle with an electric car of the same size results in CO₂ savings - unless the car is hardly used. This finding is not new, but has been scientifically confirmed by the results of the study.
However, instead of publishing the study, the Federal Office decided to withhold the results. The document was only published at the request of the magazine "Republik" and the WAV research collective. At the same time, the Office distanced itself from the conclusions in writing, stating that the framework conditions had changed since the study was commissioned in 2022. The study no longer provides a clear answer.
Technically sound but politically sensitive
This reticence was met with incomprehension by experts. Scientists such as Romain Sacchi from the Paul Scherrer Institute praised the study as "excellent" and its results as "clear". The Touring Club Switzerland (TCS), from which several experts were involved, also expressed surprise at the non-publication.
Internal e-mails, which became accessible through a further public request, show The study caused nervousness within the Swiss Federal Office of Energy. It was "potentially sensitive", according to a message from December 2024, and there were fears that the recommendations could be perceived as elitist or politically exploited - especially in a climate in which the Federal Administration was already viewed critically.
Although the SFOE is headed by SVP Federal Councillor Albert Rösti - formerly a lobbyist for heating oil and the automotive industry - the emails suggest that the decision not to publish was made at departmental level. The General Secretariat and the Federal Council itself were only informed at a late stage. As a member of the National Council, Rösti had expressed his support for electromobility.
The internal discussions show how desperately reasons were sought to prevent publication. Ideas such as reclassifying it as an "interim report" were legally rejected. In the end, the office argued that the study was incomplete and should be revised. Nevertheless, it was released to the media after legal pressure.
Fear of right-wing criticism instead of fact-based politics
The study cost CHF 118,000 - taxpayers' money that, according to Green Liberal National Councillor Jürg Grossen, should not simply disappear into oblivion. The results are neither surprising nor controversial, he says. Martin Winder from the Swiss Transport Club (VCS) also emphasizes: "Such studies are central to climate-friendly behavioural orientation."
According to "Republik", the real scandal is that a government agency is deliberately withholding scientifically sound information from the public for fear of backlash. And this in an area in which Switzerland is already lagging behind. Although every second newly registered car should be an e-car by this year, the actual figure is currently only around 30 percent. The transport sector remains the country's biggest CO₂ polluter.
Reading between the lines of the internal communication, it is clear that the fear that the study could be read as a political statement against fossil mobility was a decisive factor in their reticence. They did not want to provide a target for the media or right-wing populist circles warning against "state re-education", according to the "Republik".
But it is precisely this silence that undermines the credibility of a fact-based energy and climate policy.
This article was created with the help of AI.
