EV100: Corporates accelerating electric vehicle rollouts

Image: Tesco

The Climate Group launched its EV100 initiative in 2017 with an initial cohort of 10 businesses. The aim was to make EVs the new normal in business fleets by 2030, with most members committing to fully transition their fleets in the 2020s. Members also work collaboratively to engage policymakers and other key stakeholders.

EV100 has today (20 January) published its latest annual progress and insights report, confirming that it has 127 members that now collectively operate 400,000 EVs – 93% more EVs than were covered by the initiative 12 months ago.

This growth was not driven purely by an increase in members, with just seven new companies coming onboard since the last annual report. Rather, the Climate Group is pointing to more favourable policy landscapes in several key markets, enabling corporates to accelerate deployment.

Member companies leading the way in EV deployment include AstraZeneca, Siemens and Leaseplan. Also in the top ten are Ikea’s parent company Ingka Group, FMCG giant Unilever and consulting behemoth Deloitte.

At present, most of the EVs deployed are concentrated in Europe, which represents eight of the top 10 markets for deployment. The UK hosts more than 15,000 EVs deployed under EV100, while France hosts more than 8,800. For context, around 2,400 EV100 EVs are operating in Japan and 1,400 in the USA.

India is also a major EV100 market, with the second-highest level of corporate EVs deployed to date (more than 10,600) and the highest level of corporate fleet commitments. Should all EV100 members reach their EV deployment targets in time, more than 5.7 million EVs will be operational in their fleets by 2030. More than 169,000 of these will be based in India, and more than 104,500 in the UK.

Charging ahead

As has been the case with previous EV100 reports, this year’s edition tracks several key challenges remaining on the road to corporate fleet electrification, including charging infrastructure deployment.

It confirms that charging point installation by member firms has once again been outpaced by EV adoption, with charging stock up 44% year-on-year but vehicle numbers up 93%. Nonetheless, there has been an acceleration in charging point deployment. EV100 members now collectively host more than 30,000 individual charging points. The leading charging point deployer has been Tesco, with 520 locations now covered. In second place in Ingka Group, which boasts chargers in 405 locations.

The report also documents ongoing challenges in EV100 member procurement of a diverse range of vehicles. While there are many pure electric cars and vans available, selections are smaller for medium-duty, heavy-duty and specialist vehicles. To that end, the Climate Group recently launched a spin-off EV100+ initiative focused on vehicles larger than 7.5 tonnes. Founding EV100+ members are Ingka Group, Unilever, JSW Steel, DPD and Maersk.

The Climate Group’s director of transport Sandra Roling said: To limit global temperature rises to no more than 1.5C, far more vehicles need to switch to electric.

“To support this, charging infrastructure must be built out rapidly and manufacturers must expand the volume and variety of vehicles on the market. Governments need to provide clear direction in the form of phase-out dates, supported by measures such as zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandates and CO2 standards.”

Lloyds Banking Group’s managing director for transport, Nick Williams, elaborated on EV100 policy asks in the UK. He said: “If we want the UK to truly lead the way in EV ownership, removing the barriers to convert to new EVs must be a priority focus for both government and industry moving forward.  Increased accessibility and availability of charge points in towns and cities right across the UK will be essential, alongside affordable charging units and tariffs at home.”

Williams added: “Support beyond 2023 is required for a fairer road taxation system that incentivises on removing the older, more polluting vehicles from the UK’s roads, while also supporting demand in the growing second-hand EV market.”

Through his Autumn Statement late last year, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt laid the foundation for changes to road, fuel and vehicle taxation that account for the EV transition. He stopped short of confirming a road pricing scheme at this stage but this may well be the longer-term plan. His plans to bring taxation on EVs in line with ICE vehicles from 2025, however, proved unpopular, with many saying it would hike upfront costs just as motorists need them to come down. Chris Skidmore’s Net-Zero Review recommends a thorough review of all taxes this year.

The publication of the EV100’s report comes as the EU is progressing with plans to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars across the bloc by 2035. It is also setting out requirements for a 55% reduction in CO2 emissions for new cars sold from 2030, with a 2021 baseline.

Final approval is expected in March, but we can expect fierce pushback from some member states, including Italy.

Join the EV debate at edie 23 

Taking place in London on 1-2 March 2023, edie’s biggest annual event has undergone a major revamp to become edie 23, with a new name, new venue, multiple new content streams and myriad innovative event features and networking opportunities.

edie 23 will take place at the state-of-the-art 133 Houndsditch conference venue in central London. Held over two floors, the event will offer up two full days of keynotes, panels, best-practice case studies and audience-led discussions across three themed stages – Strategy, Net-Zero and Action.

We are also hosting a range of workshops, including a workshop on net-zero transport and sustainable mobility on the afternoon of Day One (1 March). The workshop will be chaired by Claire Haigh, founder and CEO of Greener Vision, who will be joined by Tim Anderson, group head of transport at EST.

Click here for full information and to book your ticket.