The cost of acquiring the electric vehicle slows down the electrification of transport in rural areas |

2023-06-08 17:27:22

The Association of Electric Power Distributors (CIDE) ensures that the cost of acquiring the electric vehicle has slowed down the electrification of transport in rural areas, also affected by the lack of public infrastructure and an inadequate perception of the benefits of its use.

The second report from CIDE’s Rural Decarbonization Observatory has shown that in Spain there continues to be a great territorial imbalance in the implementation of electric vehicles.

Specifically, 40% of rural households and more than 30% of companies in the same field have considered that the cost of acquiring an electric vehicle is a barrier to the electrification of transport in rural areas.

The report also shows that the majority of those surveyed who do not have an electric vehicle do not intend to purchase one in the coming years, while those who do consider the purchase will do so, to a greater extent, in up to five years. .

In 2021, the number of electric vehicles nationwide increased by approximately 37,000 units, reaching 162,000, although only 10% would correspond to rural areas.

In this line, the report reveals that the rural population, in general, presents significant limitations in relation to access to information and specialized advice, while only a third of rural respondents have a public recharge near their home.

On the other hand, given the renewal of the rural automobile fleet in the coming years, an opportunity for its electrification is foreseeably presented, according to the report, taking into account that 80% of current vehicles are more than 10 years old.

After the results observed in 2021, the forecasts, according to CIDE, are for continued growth, “although reaching figures that are still far from the goal of five million electric vehicles by 2030.”