Half of the electric car charging points in the European Union are concentrated in just two countries – the Netherlands and Germany – according to new data from the motor industry.
Despite making up less than 10 per cent of the EU in terms of size, the two countries dominate the EV charging infrastructure. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) the gap between countries at the top and bottom of the rankings for charging points is massive.
The Netherlands – the country with the most infrastructure – has almost 1,600 times more charging points than the country with the least infrastructure, Cyprus, with just 57 charging points. Indeed, the Dutch have as many chargers as 23 member states combined, according to the ACEA.
“When it comes to the distribution of infrastructure, there is a clear split between central and eastern European countries on the one hand and western European countries on the other. For instance, a sizeable country like Romania – seven times larger than the Netherlands – only has 0.4% of all the EU’s charging points," the ACEA said in a statement.
Ireland has a surface area representing 1.7 per cent of the EU, but has a 0.5 per cent share of the total EU charging points.
Although there has been a strong increase in the number of charging points in the EU over the past five years – up 180 per cent - the total number (307,000) falls far short of what is required, according to the ACEA.
“While some countries are powering ahead when it comes to infrastructure rollout, the majority are lagging behind,” stated ACEA director general, Eric-Mark Huitema.
*Article amended at 5pm on Wednesday, June 22nd to insert missing part of sentence.
