Germany is on the cusp of meeting its goal of 1 million electric cars on German roads. That goal was actually set for last year, but despite generous subsidies for the purchase of electric and hybrid cars, it did not work out.
Minister of Economic Affairs Peter Altmaier is nevertheless satisfied, and he told the newspaper Tagesspiegel. “We will meet our goal, which many saw as unachievable, in July with only a six-month delay.” Moreover, Altmaier believes that the next target of 7 to 10 million electric vehicles sold by 2030 can be reached faster. This is because more and more people see environmentally friendly transport as logical, and car manufacturers increasingly focus on electric cars.
The minister is counting on a record amount of subsidies for electric cars to be provided this year. In the first half, the subsidy already amounted to 1.25 billion euros, more than in the whole of 2020. Germans can receive up to 9,000 euros if they buy a fully electric car and up to 6750 euros when buying a hybrid car.
At the same time, the subsidy pot for chargers for electric cars for this year is almost empty. Transport Minister Andreas Scheurer, therefore, calls on his colleague from Finance to make another 200 million euros available on top of the 500 million euros announced for this year.
According to Scheurer, stopping the subsidy scheme would now be “a bad signal”. The subsidy scheme for a charging point is important for people considering switching to electric driving, says Scheurer.