Businesses across the UK are set to heavily invest in the transition to electric vehicles in 2022, with an estimated £13.6 billion set to be spent this year.
With the UK set to ban internal combustion engine vehicles in 2030, businesses are beginning to invest in new fleets that will replace their polluting vehicles. In fact, in 2021, businesses across the UK spent £11.6 billion on electric vehicles and the supporting infrastructure in 2021, according to a new study from Centrica Business Solutions.
It’s expected that 2022 will see a 15% increase in spend, reaching £13.6 billion by the end of the year, with a lot of that spend being dedicated to overhauling entire fleets of vehicles. In fact, 163,000 electric vehicles are set to join business fleets this year. However, the addition of electric vehicles to fleets isn’t enough, with many companies also committing to the installation of electric vehicle chargers, both at the workplace and at employees’ homes.
According to Centrica Business Solutions, 36% of businesses are planning to install EV charging points at employees’ homes in the next 12 months, while an additional 44% have already installed at least some chargers at employees’ homes.
Businesses are also installing chargers on their own premises, almost half (48%) of firms have installed EV charging points at their premises, with more than a third (36%) planning to invest in on-site charging infrastructure in the next 12 months.
Those new chargers will be necessary, as a reported 56% of businesses say they have not increased the size of their EV fleet in the past 12 months, with 46% noting that the lack of public charging infrastructure being a major reason behind that. In fact, 64% of businesses said they were either completely or partially reliant on public charging infrastructure to operate their EV fleet – a huge risk as the number of electric vehicles on the road explodes.
The research also revealed that two fifths (40%) of businesses have invested in renewable energy generation technology such as solar panels to power their fleets, while a further two fifths (43%) plan to do so in the year ahead.
Greg McKenna, Managing Director of Centrica Business Solutions, commented, “The UK continues to make significant inroads towards achieving its electric vehicle ambitions and it’s encouraging to see UK businesses prioritising investment in the journey towards electrification over the next 12 months.
“Businesses will continue to play a vital role in achieving the UK’s green transport ambitions, but with a record number of EVs expected to enter the UK this year, we must ensure the supply of vehicles and wider charging infrastructure is robust enough to meet the demand. Combining energy technology such as solar panels and battery storage into the wider charging infrastructure will help harness renewables and reduce the demand on the grid during peak charging times.”