Germany mandates EV chargers at all service stations

All service stations in Germany will be required to offer electric vehicle charging in an effort to boost EV demand by reducing range anxiety.

The German government announcement, which follows new measures announced in France last week to lift EV sales, is a key part of the most populous EU nation’s 130 billion euro ($A146b) economic stimulus package.

Other moves in Germany include a 6000-euro ($A9765) subsidy for EV buyers and taxes for owners of large combustion-engined SUVs.

As part of the German government’s recovery plan, 2.5 billion euros ($A3.25b) will be spent on battery cell production and charging infrastructure.

Thanks primarily to concerns around recharging infrastructure, EVs account for just 1.8 per cent of all new passenger cars sold in Germany (and even less in Australia), with diesel and petrol cars accounting for 32 and 59.2 per cent respectively.

“We know that 97 per cent of the reason why they’re not buying electric cars is range anxiety,” Quercus Real Assets chairman and co-founder Diego Biasi told Reuters.

“The German move is a way to try and fix this range anxiety since it means you know a petrol station is always open.”

According to BDEW, Germany’s association for the energy and water industry, there were 27,730 EV charging stations in the country as of March.

Meantime, Germany’s main roadside assistance association ADAC says the number of petrol stations in the nation has fallen from 40,640 in 1965 to 14,118 in 2020.

BDEW says at least 70,000 charging stations and 7000 fast-chargers are required to achieve a mass market for EVs.

In Australia, there are fewer than 2000 EV charging stations, about 250 of which are fast-chargers located at 110 sites.