Leading businesses across the globe have increased their EV fleets by 57% in the last year, switching hundreds of thousands more cars and vans to electric.

Leading businesses across the globe have increased their EV fleets by 57% in the last year

The top corporates, which include Siemens and Ikea, are part of the EV100 initiative, which gathers together leaders in the EV shift.

Run by the Climate Group, the scheme aims to drive the demand for EVs by getting some of the biggest fleet owners in the world to commit to the transition.

Its latest ‘Charging the EV Transition’ Annual Report reveals how the switch to electric is gathering pace among corporates. The report outlines that over the last 12 months, 231,000 vehicles were switched to EVs, a jump of 57% from last year, and bringing their fleets 630,000 EVs globally, showing that the 128 EV100 members continue to match their ambition with action.

In a further sign of commitment to a zero-emission future for transport, members of the corporate initiative have installed over 35,000 EV chargers at 3,442 different locations worldwide, with 5,000 coming online in the last year alone. This means over half of charging units the businesses have committed to installing are already operational.

EV100 members have committed to run 5.45 million EVs by 2030 – but the Climate Group said their pledge must be backed by automakers by providing increased variety and availability of affordable EVs for company fleets.

The group has also said support from policymakers is vital to speed up the transition and it’s calling on governments worldwide to urgently build out public charging networks, and work in partnership with pioneering businesses that are already running EVs, to ensure investment in infrastructure is targeted at locations of greatest need.

Other measures, such as clear phase-out dates for petrol and diesel vehicles and implementing measures such as zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandates and CO2 standards, will further allow businesses to invest with confidence in fully electric options.

Now in its sixth year, EV100 has grown from an initial group of 10 businesses in 2017 to a group of 128 EV pioneers, continually raising their ambition on the way to going fully electric by 2030.

Sandra Roling, director of transport, Climate Group, said: “Businesses continue to lead the EV charge. Year on year, we’re seeing more ambition and it’s translating into real change, with more EVs deployed in the last 12 months by EV100 members than across any other.

“Yet there’s more work to be done to make the transition truly global, despite our network spanning 71 countries already. We’re seeing ambition rapidly translate into action in leading countries where the right policy context has been created. But companies still face challenges in less advanced markets where EVs are difficult to obtain and charging infrastructure is lacking.”

Siemens USA backed the EV100 call for increased charging infrastructure.

Matt Helgeson, head of sustainability, said: “Along with our partners at EV100, Siemens has committed to electrify our fleet across the globe by 2030.

“With so many others setting similar goals there is a significant need to ensure the infrastructure is in place to support this transition, so we are also investing in manufacturing EV chargers and technologies to advance the future of accessible and interoperable electrified transport.”

And Karen Pflug, chief sustainability officer, Ingka Group (Ikea), added: “As we move towards our aim for all home deliveries to be made by zero-emission vehicles by 2025, we’re not only reducing emissions in our own operations, but partnering with organisations like EV100 to drive innovation, leadership, and advocate for change to accelerate the broader transition to zero-emission transport.

“Like many other companies we are facing some challenges on the way, but we are determined to be part of the solution and continue to work together with partners to show that transitioning to zero-emission transport is the way forward, even if we don’t yet have all the answers.”