LoginCharging for International Fleet Managers
Mathijs Van der Goot Global EV & Charging Manager, LeasePlan
The electrification of fleet continues at a decent pace, with the LeasePlan’s new orders for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids increasing in Q1 2021 to a record 16.9 [¹]. This underlies the importance of our strategy to achieve zero tailpipe emissions from our fleet by 2030. This increase is driven by improved EV model availability, improved range and TCO.
The e-vehicle availability is significantly increasing with over 90 models available this year from the OEMs. The range of these vehicles have improved to the point that many of our customers don’t consider ‘range anxiety’ as an important hurdle anymore. And our EV readiness index [²] shows that in many markets the TCO is closing in with petrol and diesel equivalents, especially if you consider the energy costs and the costs for the drivers (BIK).
The critical role of EV charging
I now consider the charging infrastructure the largest hurdle towards electrification of fleets. Let me start by pointing out that the market in recent years does show a strong improvement. There are now over 250k public charge points in Europe, which is a 35% increase year-on-year [³]. Next to this, the private chargers market (home & workplace chargers) have many new entrants of suppliers in hardware and service across Europe, leading to lower prices and stronger product propositions.
However, the decentral nature of charging provides quite some challenges for fleet managers. There are easily over 500 different public charging operators (CPOs) in Europe, which unfortunate are not all interoperable with each other. Contracting them all directly is not an efficient model for our clients. Limited price transparency and the different tariffs per charge pole add to the complexity of public charging for international fleet managers.
The home charger category also provides many questions. The blend between private and business usage is a challenge for fleet managers. What to do with the installation of a charger at the private house of the driver? How to handle the reimbursement of home electricity? And how green is the energy that actually is charged with the fleet vehicles?
How to put this into perspective for an international fleet manager? Our data shows that on average, 10% of all charge sessions happens at public chargers, 30% at the workplace and 60% at the home of the driver. Therefore the right approach to charging is paramount:
- Selection of the right product configuration and services for charging
- The car policy needs to be adjusted to facilitate home, workplace and on the go charging
- Communications of the offered charging solution to the drivers
Partnering with you in your EV transition
LeasePlan ambitions on electrification are clear and it is our aim to provide full support to our customers in their transition.
We’re providing for example charge card solutions to support you with the payments of all those different charge networks with roaming capabilities. The coverage of this card solution is already above 200k in Europe and growing every day with in many markets full coverage. For workplace charger we offer a full solution to support you with your needs. And we’re providing a full end-to-end home charger solution in EV-ready markets. This solution adds a complete home charger solution to the lease of the vehicle. The installation, hardware and services are all included. This includes the automatic reimbursement option to facilitate the payment to the driver for their own home electricity.
Finally, with our own brand of LeasePlan Energy we can even deliver 100% renewable electricity to the houses of your drivers.
If you would like to discuss the above please feel free to reach out to your dedicated account manager
