BMW is aiming to cut its European fleet average emissions of CO2 by around 20% this year, according to remarks attributed to Chief Financial Officer Nicolas Peter.

Car companies in Europe are having to develop strategies to hit much stricter average CO2 figures this year, including sell more high-efficiency and electrified vehicles. However, they are having to work against headwinds such as demand shifting to relatively heavy SUVs and the market turning away from diesel engines.

"The fleet average emissions will go down significantly in 2020, by around 20%," Peter told journalists at a roundtable discussion in Munich, according to Reuters. BMW's fleet average emissions were 128 grams per kilometer in 2018, and just below that in 2019, he added.

The Reuters report said that Peter told the roundtable that this year BMW's fleet average emissions will be just over 100 grams per kilometre and the carmaker will meet the emissions standards for 2021.