Mobility Basic Figures

According to the EU funded ALTERMOTIVE research the total energy consumption in car passenger transport in Estonia has grown from 12.3 PJ in 2000 to 17 PJ in the year 2007. The highest growth rates were in recent years after 2004 and can be attributed at least to some extent to Estonia’s membership in the EU. The market share of diesel in car passenger transport increased until 2007. Since the fall of the Soviet Union and Estonia’s entry into the European Union in 2004, the average age of the car fleet has plummeted. However, still 65 percent of cars have been on the road for over 10 years. The passenger vehicles total stock in Estonia has grown from about 64,000 cars in 1974 to more than 400,000 cars in 2007. The share of diesel cars has reached about 20%. The percentage of alternative fuel vehicles is very small (0.09% for hybrid vehicles, and 0.01 % for electric cars). In absolute figures 427 hybrid vehicles and 24 electric cars have been registered in the year 2008. According to the EU funded project BEST no flexifuel vehicles have been registered in Estonia until 2009. Tallinn, the capital of Estonia is the only city in the country in which CNG buses are used to some extent.

In 2010 an Air Quality Improvement Action Plan that provides guidelines to reduce air pollution in Tallinn was confirmed. The Action Plan was based on the fact that in 2005-2007 the fine particle emission in more than 35 days par year reaches an average daily maximum value of 50 ĩg / m3. Actions which are planned to be undertaken in the near future include technical measures and a variety of organizational measures (stimulation of e-mobility, introducing a city centre of congestion charge as in Stockholm or London, etc.). Some measures are applied such as more stringent emission limits for new diesel cars and the obligatory particle filters will be obligatory country wide.

The geo-information system European Environmental Atlas (technologies.ew.eea.europa.eu/atlas_map) shows 4 LPG refuel stations in Estonia; 2 in Tallinn, 1 in Sillamae and 1 in the Pamu region. The first refuelling station of natural gas (CNG) was opened in Tallinn in August 2009. The company called AS Eesti Gaas plans to open 2 more refuelling station close to the natual gas grid, namely in cities Tartu and Pärnu. No refuelling stations for biogas (Methan), biodiesel and hydrogen are listed (also verified by other sources). The European funded BEST projects lists 4 E85 flexifuel pumps in the country whereof two in the Tallinn region.

Fiscal Incentives

In Estonia there is a uniform VAT of 18% on all types of vehicles and fuels. At the moment there is no registration and circulation tax.

There is an excise tax of 0.359 EUR/litre on gasoline and 0.330 EUR/litre on diesel. Biofuels are exempted from excise tax (law N 314/2005 of the Ministry of Finance).

Funds

In 2010 there is no aid programme/public funding of clean vehicle in Estonia. In 2007 there was the last call of the Air Pollution Protection and Energy Reduction Program. It has included as a major objective among others the Transportation Emission Reduction including raising the share of public transport and electrical and other alternative vehicles. Grants were given to i.e. applied research into more environmentally friendly motor vehicles tax and other incentives, the possibility of heavy trucks and road trains and toll setting as well as applied research on a possible use of alternative fuels for transport. Some of the results are incorporated in the Air Quality Improvement Action Plan for Tallinn.

Regulation

Estonia has set a biofuel target of 5.75% for 2010.

Under the Alcohol, Tobacco and Fuel Excise Duty Act, biofuel is exempt from excise duty once the European Commission has authorised it and until that authorisation expires. Biofuel, for which the first four digits of the CN code are 4401 or 4402, is unconditionally exempt from excise duty. Authorisation to exempt biofuel from excise duty was received from the European Commission in a letter dated 27 July 2005. The authorisation number for the exemption of biofuel from excise duty is 314/2005 and it is valid for 6 years.

Decree No 352 from December 2004 is titled "Motor vehicles are motor vehicles and parts of the collection, return to the producer, re-use or disposal requirements, procedures, targets and implementation deadlines." That regulation states that, repossession, collection and recycling and disposal requirements apply to motor vehicles and their parts is obligatory for motor categories M1, N1 and L5e.

Unleaded fuels are banned in Estonia since 2001. A maximum of 10 gr/litre sulphur is allowed for diesel and petrol.

The new Public Procurement Act, which entered into force on 1 May 2007, lays down the bases for the use of environmental indicators and criteria in public procurement. Section 3(6) of the Act states that, where possible, the contractor must favour environmentally sustainable solutions. Public Procurement Agency has been completed. From July 2010 the Ministry of Finance has took all responsibilities for public procurement including the operation of the central procurement platform (before the so-called Public Procurement Agency as independent body was responsible). Within the public procurement guidelines there is a specific section for the purchase of vehicles. Vehicles acquired by state agencies varies from vehicles (e.g. cars, the bodies of vehicles, vans or garden), operational vehicles (ambulances, fire trucks, police cars) and special vehicles (cars, street cleaning, refuse collection lorries, buses, etc.). For the award of contracts concerning the purchase of vehicles and transport service specific environmental criteria are applied:

• Passenger cars and light trucks: The main criteria will focus on CO2 and other polluting emissions and noise levels. In-depth criteria include addition of other elements that may affect vehicle fuel consumption and have other environmental impacts. Leasing of vehicles for hire, or for conducting the tender procedure has to be added to some of the environmental aspects related to maintenance, as maintenance work carried out by the contractor. In both cases success is defined in the tender award criteria in order to promote the progress of tenders or allow them to compare and choose the most environmentally friendly way.

• Public transportation and services: Just a few years ago, most public transport services are managed by public authorities (mainly local and regional administrations) either directly or officials responsible for public service through the company. In recent years, the procurement procedures of the organization of public bus services, however, has vastly increased. Therefore, the criteria set out in the purchase of buses and public transport services. Bus procurement is an essential criteria for the preparation of the main focus of bus-related environmental and health effects, namely the exhaust and the noise level (by defining the technical characteristics of certain vehicles). Substantive criteria take into account other factors that contribute to reducing other environmental impacts. Bus services will focus on key criteria in public procurement as well as exhaust emissions and noise levels and eco-management training for bus drivers in order to reduce fuel consumption. In this case, the majority defines the criteria for determining the success of the tender criteria, to allow comparison of the bus fleet and to give them more environmentally friendly items.

• Transport service and waste collection: As in the case of transport services, waste collection services will also be provided through the procurement procedures for private companies. The criteria are very similar to those of buses, as well as waste collection trucks are heavy. The only difference is that they are encouraged to set aside and gear shift indicators of global warming potential (GWP) of the criteria. Waste collection trucks at low speeds and frequent stops of buses running rhythm are different. Gear shift indicators are not particularly necessary in this case. It also seems a less relevant criteria relating to air conditioning, because only processed in the cabin air and in many countries the service is performed at night or early morning when the air conditioning was not necessary.

www.fin.ee/riigihanked	webpage of the Estonian Ministry of Finance responsible for the public procurement
www.envir.ee	webpage of the Estonian Ministry of Environment
https://www.riigiteataja.ee/ert/act.jsp?id=13190462&searchCurrent	Link to the Estonian Public Procurement Act
www.envir.ee/KHRH	webpage with detailed description of green public procurement operated by the Estonian Ministry of Environment
https://riigihanked.riik.ee/rhr/RegisterHanked.html	procurement register webpage with all tenders including for vehicles purchase
www.kik.ee	webpage of the environmental investment centre with information on public funding of environmental friendly technology
www.mnt.ee/atp/	webpage of the Estonian Road Administration

2007 guidelines on public procurement

Buying Geen Handbook

Traffic –Green Public Procurement Product Sheet

GRIP Evaluation Tool

Producer responsibility for WEEE, ELV, old tires and the handling of waste batteries and accumulators

Tallinn's air quality improvement plan