In July 2021, the EU announced its ‘Fit for 55’ package*, replacing the previous CO2 reduction of 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. The new target, a 55% net reduction by 2030 is an ambitious target not only for the automotive industry, but for EU member states to build up the required charging points.
By 2030, fossil-fuelled cars will no longer be manufactured and some OEMs are even raising the stakes by claiming they will no longer produce traditionally fuelled cars post 2025. That’s great news for the environment and shows admirable dedication on behalf of automotive manufacturers, doing their bit. However, there is a knock-on effect of all these EVs running around in years to come… in the guise of EV charging and EV infrastructure. The one thing that is cited time and time again regarding the slow adoption of EVs across Europe is the lack of infrastructure in some countries. Granted, there are the early adopters, such as Netherlands and Sweden who are romping ahead of the curve. But there are plenty of countries where the number of public chargers has yet to catch up with the growing EV market.
The two are directly and intrinsically linked. Without public chargers, there will be reluctance to buy an EV for everyday use which often includes travelling distances further than the range that one charge will provide. And once EVs become more common place, the demand for more public chargers will be even greater when home charging points/access becomes more difficult to attain for those people without driveways or dedicated parking spaces.
The draft ‘Fit for 55’ report* introduces a new requirement for commercial buildings with public parking facilities (with more than 10 parking spaces for LDVs) to equip at least 15 % of their parking spaces with publicly accessible recharging points.
As such, by 2025, Europe will need 1.3M public chargers to fulfil demand; and in 2030, to meet the goal of decreasing CO2 emissions, the demand will be 2.9M public chargers. The Transport & Environment Charging Infrastructure Supply and Cost model predicts 78% of the EVs public charging points will be needed in the 5 biggest EU markets: Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Austria and Poland.
So with a target to be climate neutral by 2050, Wattif EV’s contribution is to offer a partnership solution to professional landowners in Europe, to become the leading destination charging provider. Wattif EV is on a quest to enable destination charging as the route to net zero…we know it’s only a small step in the right direction but small steps today yield great rewards tomorrow.
If you’d like to know more about Wattif EV’s partnership model for destination charging, please get in touch with us at post@wattifev.com
*Source: Deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure: Fit for 55 package (europa.eu)
BRIEFING EU Legislation in Progress EPRS | European Parliamentary Research Service Author: Jaan Soone Members’ Research Service PE 698.795 – March 2022 EN Deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure: Fit for 55 package