Overview
CAPIRE is a Coordination Action within the framework of the European Green Cars Initiative. The CAPIRE project will prepare and support the realisation of a Public Private Partnership (PPP) sustaining and putting into practice the European Green Cars Initiative.
CAPIRE focuses on projects which could foster the competitiveness of the European Automotive Industry in the domain of Transport Electrification as well as in the development of technologies and services to reduce the European CO2 footprint.
The CAPIRE activities will be focused on two major fields: (i) a careful consideration of options for the aims, shape, and implementation paths of a PPP, and (ii)the identification of technology roadblocks and the respective research needs within FP7.
Major outcomes will be an appropriate and proven PPP implementation model and a dedicated roadmap based on an elaborated and deep analysis of R&D needs, respective milestones and supporting measures. The goal is to increase the competitiveness globally of the European Automotive Industry in the domain of energy efficient, safe, non-polluting and CO2-free vehicles.
To be broad enough, the strategy has to be based on the three following technology pillars:
- Passenger cars and LCV: to reduce local pollution, emission of green house gases, and noise by accelerating electrification of vehicles and provision of a dedicated infrastructure for the connection to CO2-free energy sources;
- Trucks and Buses: to improve overall efficiency of transport of people and goods by accelerating the improvement of ICE technologies and their potential partial electrification;
- Logistics: to increase the efficiency of goods transport by optimizing loading rate of trucks and mixing different energy saving transport vectors as rail transport and road transport.
The results of CAPIRE will serve as a guideline for automotive R&D and European road transport policy related to the Green Cars topic. Their deployment will require a strong cooperation between OEMs, automotive technology suppliers, road and traffic operators, energy and service providers, universities, and public authorities to reach the ambitious target related to key technologies in a medium and long term perspective.
Funding
Results
Green cars a step closer to reality
The prospect of electric vehicles on European streets is becoming more palpable, thanks to a series of roadmaps that will direct EU funding and encourage competitiveness in the automotive sector.
In recent years, the EU realised the need for public-private partnerships (PPPs) to promote greener transport and help breathe life into an ailing automotive industry. One particular PPP, called the Green Cars Initiative, was established to support road and urban transport electrification.
The EU-funded http://www.capire.eu (CAPIRE) (Coordination action on PPP implementation for road-transport electrification) project helped to advance this objective and support the Green Cars Initiative. The project furthered research and development in the field, in addition to identifying projects that can enhance the competitiveness of Europe's electric car industry.
It investigated different options and implementation paths for the PPP, outlining barriers and identifying research gaps and needs. By analysing research and development requirements, CAPIRE built roadmaps to power the electrification drive, involving different sectors of the economy and relevant public authorities.
The roadmap was designed to guide stakeholders in producing safe, energy-efficient, carbon-free vehicles on a global scale. Such a vision is based on three technology pillars. The first is to reduce pollution by developing dedicated infrastructure to connect to carbon dioxide-free energy sources. The second is to upgrade transport of goods and people through electric trucks and buses, and the third is to optimise road and rail transport logistics.
In this vein, the project team completed an in-depth study of European road transport research funding and updated electrification roadmaps first released in 2009, providing recommendations for Horizon 2020. It then articulated more detailed roadmaps and recommendations on long-distance road transport and logistics, covering major technology breakthroughs and technology optimisation cost effectively. Roadmaps related to horizontal areas such as infrastructure, information and communications systems, and simulation and testing were appended to the initial roadmap.
Project progress has also hinged on customer acceptance through workshops and events facilitating research exchange and networking among stakeholders. The roadmaps are already forming the basis for EU-funded project calls, encouraging the sector's competitiveness and facilitating the realisation of clean electric vehicles in coming decades.