Driving an electric car is more complicated in these countries

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It is extremely difficult to find electric charging points in some countries like Lithuania, Greece and Poland.

According to the latest data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, 10 European Union member states have an average of less than one electric charging point every 100 km. This makes it difficult to drive an electric car properly in Eastern Europe, while in the Netherlands and Germany the infrastructure is particularly substantial.

Lithuania and Greece are the two countries in Europe with the most undersized networks of electric charging points, with  the equivalent of just 0.2 charging points available for every 100 km of road! In contrast, the Netherlands (47.5), Luxembourg (34.5) and Germany (19.4) are top performers. France, with a score of 4.1 recharge points available every 100 km, still has some way to go. The country’s goal of having 100,000 charging points by the end of 2021 will not be reached, with the total barely exceeding 40,000 in France this summer.

These statistics reveal that there is still a serious lack of electric charging points in many countries, even though the market has been booming for more than a year, nearly everywhere. The countries with the fewest charging points are, unsurprisingly, also those where the market share of electric cars is currently the lowest.

Note that the European Commission wants CO2 emissions from new cars to be 55% lower by 2030 than in 2021. This is why car manufacturers are already deploying an increasing number of electrified models (100% electric or rechargeable hybrids). However, the network of public charging points needs to align with the numbers so that drivers can make long journeys without worrying whether they will be able to find a charging point.

Top 10 European countries with the fewest charging points per 100 km

1. Lithuania (0.2)2. Greece (0.2)3. Poland (0.4)4. Latvia(0.5)5. Romania (0.5)6. Cyprus (0.5)7. Hungary (0.6)8. Estonia (0.7)9. Bulgaria (0.8)10. Czech Republic (0.9)

David Bénard