According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), in the second quarter of 2022, 9.9% more electric vehicles were registered in Europe compared to 2021. In Estonia, the growth has been significant as well – in just five years, the number of electric vehicles has nearly increased tenfold, based on registration data. Over the past year, the increase has been even more remarkable – in the first three quarters of 2022, 917 electric vehicles were registered, compared to 808 electric vehicles in the entire previous year.
The rise is driven by international companies
Andrus Valma, CEO of Mobire Group, a company offering full-service car rentals, confirmed that the popularity of electric vehicles is on the rise. “This year, we have also seen a significant increase in the demand for full-electric vehicle rentals. Similar to the overall statistics, we have experienced a 50% growth in full-electric vehicle rental volume in the first three quarters of 2022 compared to the previous full year,” said Valma. He noted, however, that among private individuals, such significant growth cannot be observed. While interest in environmentally friendly vehicles is growing among Estonians, the decision to opt for a fully electric vehicle still feels like too big a leap. “Estonian drivers need time to adjust. It seems easier to take smaller steps – hybrid vehicles have been very well received, but the share of fully electric vehicles among private renters is still relatively low,” Valma remarked.
“When it comes to rental services, electric vehicles are primarily of interest to business clients who want to reduce their company’s environmental footprint,” said Mobire’s CEO, adding that there is more interest among international companies operating in Estonia that want to reduce their fleet’s CO2 emissions. Among business clients, electric vehicles with a longer range are preferred, those capable of covering at least 400 km on a single charge.
A third of the fleet of the largest data center in the Baltic, Greenergy Data Centers, consists of electric vehicles. “For us, this is part of our green mindset, and since we operate in one of the best electric vehicle-charged locations in Estonia, it is a very practical choice. Our data center parking lot also has electric vehicle charging stations,” explains Tõnu Grünberg, CEO of Greenergy Data Centers. According to him, the use of electric vehicles has proven effective, and in the future, they plan to increase the share of electric vehicles in their fleet, as the data center will operate solely on green energy.
The charging network is expanding rapidly
Although Estonia’s car charging network is still far behind other European countries, representatives from both Mobire and Circle K acknowledge that the number of chargers in Estonia has grown significantly in recent years. Teedo Melts, Circle K’s motor fuel product manager, said that the development of electric vehicles and chargers has been exponential: “Five years ago, the ‘dominant player’ in the market was the Elmo charging network (22 kW), and the electric vehicle fleet mostly consisted of Mitsubishi iMiev cars. Today, the situation is such that Circle K installs only 300 kW ultra-fast chargers at its service stations.” Melts added that the charging capacity of electric vehicles has also increased significantly during this period. “The trend is moving towards electric car owners charging their cars primarily at home at night. Public chargers at gas stations are becoming faster and provide options for quick ‘refuelling’ on the go,” Melts explained.
Mobire’s CEO also acknowledged that while there is still much to be done in developing the charging network in Estonia, the situation is much better than it was a few years ago. The growth of charging stations is partly driven by companies. “We see that several companies are actively building charging stations on their premises. There are various types of chargers and solutions available in the market, and installing them is no longer a huge undertaking for companies,” Valma said. Both Valma and Melts are confident that despite the rise in electricity prices, the electric vehicle market will continue to grow steadily, and sooner or later, we will all be using electric vehicles.
Original post is found here: https://mobire.ee/mobire/elektriautode-populaarsuse-kasv/
