The increase of electric vehicles on the European market was confirmed once again in 2019 with nearly 400,000 vehicles sold, representing a 75.3% increase compared to 2018. Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom showed the greatest growth rates. Even more so than sales, the best demonstration of this new type of mobility’s increasing popularity is electric vehicles’ share of the global vehicle pool, which rose from just 1.23% in 2018 to 2.14% last year. Particularly impressive is Norway, where 34.65% of vehicles on the roads are electric.
Renault, a historic leader in electric mobility since 2010
2019 marks ten years since Groupe Renault’s first electric vehicles were commercialized. It’s the perfect time to take a step back and look at how far we have come since the first Kangoo Z.E. Since 2010, Renault, a pioneer in the sector, has sold more than 252,000 electric vehicles in Europe, making it the leading manufacturer.
ZOE in first place
The vehicle that has most helped Groupe Renault onto the top step of the podium is none other than ZOE. Indeed, for the past ten years ZOE remains the most popular electric vehicle in Europe, with 178,405 units sold, representing 70% of electric car sales. In 2019, 47,023 sales were recorded, with 42% in France and 20% in Germany, where ZOE is number one on the market. This popularity is set to grow even further with the arrival of New ZOE.
Kangoo Z.E.: the star utility vehicle
The Kangoo Z.E. is continuing to make history in the electric utility vehicles sector. This year, the lightweight utility vehicle led global sales once again, with 10,349 vehicles sold. This reflects a 19.2% increase in sales, while Master Z.E. sales more than doubled between 2018 and 2019. In Europe, Kangoo Z.E. represents 36.6% of the market share. In France, it rises to 48%: nearly one in two lightweight electric utility vehicles is therefore a Kangoo Z.E.
Renault leading the way in carsharing
Groupe Renault’s goal is to make this sustainable, electric mobility accessible to as many people as possible. This is why the Group invests heavily in different carsharing services, including short-term self-serve rental solutions such as Renault Mobility and Zity a free-floating carsharing service already operating in Madrid and Paris. With around 8000 vehicles currently available through carsharing services in some twenty European cities, Renault is the leading manufacturer on the electric carsharing market.
Coming in 2020: New Twingo Electric and hybrid vehicles
2020 marks a new phase in Groupe Renault’s electric strategy. After 27 years and 4 million combustion-powered units sold, Twingo, the small city car, now comes in an electric version: New Twingo Electric
It will also be a big year for hybrid vehicles, with the arrival of Clio E-TECH and the launch of Captur and Mégane with new charging technology. Captur E-TECH Plug-in will be Renault’s first rechargeable hybrid vehicle with a charging port for maximum flexibility, and also the first B-segment vehicle on the market to offer this option. To support its goal of democratizing electric vehicles, Groupe Renault has chosen to make this technology, previously reserved for the “superior” categories, accessible to a larger part of the population.
Renault at the forefront of new electric ecosystems
The future of sustainable mobility extends well beyond our streets. Electric vehicles must also play a role in new ecosystems in which vehicles and the power grid are interconnected to promote the use of renewable energy and thus speed up the ecological transition. Smart charging, bidirectional charging, and the repurposing of car batteries as energy storage units are three cutting-edge technologies developed by Groupe Renault to achieve this goal. The first experiments with intelligent infrastructure are already underway in places like Porto Santo, Portugal, and soon in Belle-Île-en-Mer, France.
Renault continues to expand in the electric mobility sector, with the arrival of New Twingo Electric and E-TECH hybrid technologies, as well as solutions such as carsharing services in order to make new mobility as accessible as possible, and to meet the changing needs of cities. In parallel, the Group is pursuing its goal of changing the scale of electric mobility by investing in the creation of a veritable electric ecosystem in which vehicles and power grids communicate, thereby speeding up the transition to renewable energies.
Copyrights : BROSSARD Yannick, PRODIGIOUS Production, Groupe Renault, Frithjof Ohm INCL. Pretzsch, LEMAL Jean-Brice, PLANIMONTEUR, ADDITIVE, MAGROUND
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