The ACEA, the umbrella body that represents the European car industry, is warning that too many countries are lagging behind in installing electric vehicle (EV) chargers, and that a 'two-track' setup - where some countries consistently underperform - is starting to emerge.
The Netherlands is the top performer
According to the ACEA, 70 per cent of Europe's charging points are located in just three countries - The Netherlands, Germany, and France. The Netherlands has 66,665 charging points, France has 45,751, and Germany has 44,538 yet these three countries account for only 23 per cent of the European landmass.
"To illustrate just how asymmetrical the distribution of chargers is, Romania - roughly six times bigger than the Netherlands - counts only 493 charging points, or 0.2 per cent of the EU total." said a spokesperson for the ACEA.
The two-track expansion of charging is showing a clear divide between wealthier western European states, and those of eastern Europe, says the ACEA. Without decisive action now, it is unlikely to improve in the years to come, the association warns.
"Anyone who wants to buy an electric or fuel cell car depends on having reliable charging or refuelling infrastructure - whether that is at home, at work and on the road," stated ACEA Director General, Eric-Mark Huitema. "The time has come for governments across Europe to pick up speed in the race to greener mobility," Huitema urged.
We need six million chargers by 2030
Based on EU Commission calculations, a further decrease of car CO2 emissions by 50 per cent in 2030 would require some six million publicly available charging points. With less than 225,000 available today, that translates into a staggering 27-fold increase in less than a decade.
Ireland is very much at the lower end of the charging table, with around 2,000 public charging points if you include Tesla chargers, which at the moment are only useable by Tesla cars. With 1.7 per cent of the European landmass, we currently have 0.4 per cent of the chargers. That puts us ahead of the likes of Slovakia, Croatia, Slovenia, and Estonia, but well behind The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, and even diddy little Luxembourg. The best-performing nation, by this metric, is The Netherlands, which with just 0.8 per cent of the European landmass area, has 29.7 per cent of the continent's charging points.
Big gaps in the numbers
Mind you, there are also big gaps in the more developed nations - Italy, which is in fourth place behind Germany in the number of installed chargers, has just 13,73 charging points, while Sweden, in fifth place, has just 10,370.
The worst-performing countries, from the point of view of numbers of chargers installed, are Greece (275 chargers); Bulgaria (194); Lithuania (174); Malta (96); and Cyprus (70).