New research has suggested that a quarter of all cars will be electric by the middle of the decade.
According to Germany research centre, Chemnitz Research Institute, more than 2 million electric vehicles will be manufactured by 2025 with more than half of these being in Germany. Firms such as Volkswagen and BMW have ambitious targets to revolutionise their brands into electrification with VW especially set to invest more than £60bn in its EV plans.
Currently registrations for EVs are around 4% in Germany and is similar in the UK at around 2.8-3%. Despite the pandemic, the UK government’s Road to Zero policy and Germany’s plans to have more than 10 million EVs on the road by 2030 has incentivised manufacturers to continue their plans to electrify their vehicles.
Scotland
The news comes as the Scottish Government has announced plans to extend its Low Carbon Transport Loan to include EVs from the end of September. This move will enable businesses to get loans up to £20,000 over a first year period to build their EV fleets and infrastructure.
The loans will be delivered by the Energy Saving Trust with the hope that firms will apply due to their own sustainability targets and the financial incentives of EVs against ICE vehicles, as well as helping with Scotland’s overall 2045 net-zero target.
The loan is being expanded to help people who may otherwise be put off by the purchase price of electric vehicles.
Delivered through the Energy Saving Trust, the loan will enable people and businesses to benefit from cheaper running costs compared with petrol and diesel vehicles while supporting Scotland’s net-zero target.
Scottish transport secretary Michael Matheson said: “The global shift toward electric vehicles means that prices are coming down year on year, but the price point for new vehicles remains high for many. We want to make it easier for people to switch by providing interest free finance options for used vehicles.
“No one who requires a vehicle should be left behind from the benefits these modern vehicles can bring, both in terms of running costs and the environmental benefits.”
