Germany requires gas stations to install charging stations in an effort to take the lead in electric vehicles

According to foreign media reports, the German government announced an economic promotion plan worth 130 billion euros, including a 6,000 euro subsidy for each electric car purchase, support for electric vehicle infrastructure, and a reduction in value-added tax from 19% to 16%. It also requires each gas station to install electric vehicle charging piles to provide charging services for electric vehicle owners.

Germany is investing €2.5 billion in battery cell production and charging infrastructure as part of government incentives, an area where oil giants (including Shell), utilities (including Engie) and carmakers (Tesla, among others) are vying for the initiative.

In May, Germany registered a total of 168,100 cars, of which electric vehicles accounted for only 3.3%. When considering buying an electric car, charging infrastructure has always been one of the most important concerns for consumers. Due to the lack of charging stations, "range anxiety" will follow.

Range anxiety has always been one of the main factors hindering consumers from accepting electric vehicles. In Germany, electric vehicle sales accounted for only 1.8% of total new car sales last year, while diesel and gasoline car sales accounted for 32% and 59.2% respectively. The German Motor Vehicle Authority KBA said that in May this year, Germany sold 168,148 new cars, of which only 5,578 (about 3.3%) were electric vehicles.

Germany wants to further promote the development of electric vehicles, which requires at least 70,000 charging stations and 7,000 fast stations. In the past 10 years, the performance of electric vehicles has increased by 40% thanks to the technological improvements in battery pack design and battery cell chemical composition.

In addition, the fuel efficiency of gasoline vehicles has also improved, resulting in a decrease in the number of gas stations. According to the German Roadside Assistance Association ADAC, there were 14,118 gas stations in Germany in 2020, compared with 40,640 in 1965.