We are about to finish a year, 2022, in which the price of diesel and gasoline have reached all-time highs. Refueling the vehicle has been more expensive. However, this price increase has not translated into an increase in electric vehicle sales. Acquisitions of this type of vehicle in Spain have continued to grow at the same rate as in other years. In other words, “well below the rate at which they should grow to achieve the objectives set in terms of electrification of mobility,” warns Òscar Pulido, an expert in corporate fleets from the European Federation of Transport and Environment (Transport and Environment).
Spain is at the tail of Europe in electric mobility, with Hungary and the Czech Republic
In the first three quarters of the year, Spain has registered a total of 55,472 electrified passenger cars (pure electric plus plug-in hybrids), having met only 46.2% of the objective of the 120,000 units needed in 2022, according to data from the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (Anfac). To give you an idea: only 9.41% of registered cars correspond to electric models, of which only 3.67% are pure electric.
Nor are charging infrastructures growing at the desired rate. At the end of the third quarter, there were 16,565 public access charging points in the country, far from the 45,000 planned for this year in order to meet the commitments set for 2030.
These figures place Spain at the bottom of Europe in electrification of mobility. During the third quarter of 2022, the global electromobility indicator (which assesses the penetration of electrified vehicles and the installation of public access charging infrastructure) has achieved growth of only 0.4 points. This slight advance keeps Spain in the last positions of the European ranking, surpassing only Hungary and the Czech Republic, but each time further away from the rhythm set by Europe, of 1.1 points. Meanwhile, Germany or France grow 1.3 points and 1.7 points, respectively.
9.41% of registered passenger cars
in Spain correspond to electric models
Óscar Pulido acknowledges that the increase in electricity prices may “have generated some fear among potential buyers”, but recalls that “the kilometer in an electric vehicle continues to be infinitely cheaper than with a combustion engine”. The Transport and Environment expert also points out the higher purchase price for the acquisition of an electric vehicle as a disadvantage, “although if you do the numbers, it will be cheaper in the long run.”
Several automobile brands suggest that by 2025 there will already begin to be electric cars with prices similar to those of gasoline or diesel. In fact, given the current rise in prices, it is already being pointed out that combustion cars will most likely reach the rates of electric ones and not the other way around, as expected. The reason: electric ones require fewer components. “What makes an electric vehicle more expensive is the battery. As soon as these become cheaper, the prices of these vehicles will also do so”, says Pulido.
So that the higher prices are not a brake, in an appearance in the Congress of Deputies, the corporate director of the National Association of Vehicle Sellers and Repairers (Ganvam), Jaime Barea, insisted on the need to “invigorate demand by converting efficient mobility into an affordable option for all citizens, which involves improving the effectiveness of current aid plans that, today, are aimed at a minority”.
