Tavares calls on countries not installing EV points to suspend fines for CO2 breaches

8 March 2018

PSA Group CEO Carlos Tavares has suggested that countries whose governments are failing to install enough electric vehicle (EV) charging points to meet demand should not have the power to fine manufacturers for missing CO2 targets.

With diesel sales falling across Europe, carmakers are struggling to meet CO2 targets set out by the EU Commission, and face penalties for doing so, should these be missed by 2021. Manufacturers are trying to counter the rises, caused by an increase in petrol vehicle sales, by developing EVs. Yet some countries are still underfunding the charging infrastructure.

Tavares told the Financial Times that the onus was on governments to ensure that recharging networks were in place before people would be convinced to buy electric vehicles.

′The financial penalties should be dependent on the ability of the state to deliver a minimum level of charging density, that would give potential consumers the comfort to buy electric cars knowing that he is going to be able to charge it,’ he said. ′Consumers will not buy cars that they are not able to charge.’

Tavares said that a European deal was needed to agree that charging points should be installed to encourage consumers to adopt the vehicles. PSA has pledged to offer electric or hybrid options on every vehicle by 2025, with the first of its cars coming to market next year.

In Germany, there are only around 11,000 charging points available for 34,000 vehicles registered, while in the UK, councils are failing to take up government grants to install EV charging columns for public use. While a number of projects, including the manufacturer-backed Ionity scheme, aim to build fast-charging locations across Europe, development of these is still some way off.

Tavares’ comments come as PSA Group and Digital Charging Solutions (DCS) announced a partnership to provide Peugeot and Citroen customers with access to a network of charging stations.

DCS is a subsidiary of BMW and operator of the ChargeNow service. The agreement will launch the ChargeMyPeugeot and ChargeMyCitroen options available in the company’s app, giving owners access to 6,360 EV charging stations across France, including 460 fast-charging points. Users can access the charging station using their subscription cards. By the end of 2018, the network is expected to have 9,000 charging points available in France.

′Our partnership with DCS illustrates our strategy of facilitating the energy transition. With ChargeMyPeugeot and ChargeMyCitroen, we are developing a service that makes life easier for our customers. This comprehensive service allows people to use their electric vehicle more simply by quickly pinpointing available terminals,’ said Jérémie Maestracci, director of the Electric Vehicles Business Unit, Groupe PSA.