Why the electric car is not yet a great success in Switzerland

Switzerland as a pioneer of electric cars in Europe? We must say goodbye to this self-image, as shown by a new analysis by the Swiss trade association for eMobility. From 6th place in 2022, we have fallen to 8th place in 2023 among the countries with the highest share of electric cars.

Particularly painful: Switzerland was only in 13th place in 2023 in terms of the growth of electric cars. Many European countries grew significantly faster. Swiss eMobility director Krispin Romang expects Switzerland to soon disappear from the top 10 in Europe. This is despite the high purchasing power and although there is a relatively well-developed public charging network in this country. Not a commendable development for a country that still plays the role of model student for climate protection.

One thing is clear: the Nordic countries are making progress when it comes to the mobility transition. In Finland, for example, the market share has almost doubled: from 18 to 34 percent within a year. In Denmark it went from 21 to 36 percent. Norway is in a league of its own with electric cars accounting for 82 percent of new car sales.

In Switzerland, the use of electric cars increased only modestly last year, from 18 to just under 21 percent. This means that growth has weakened somewhat compared to previous years. “We have not yet managed to create a more electromobility-friendly framework in Switzerland,” says Romang. “Above all, the lack of access to home charging stations makes it impossible for us to keep pace with international developments.”

However, there can be no question of an end to the rise of the Swiss e-car: “In 2023 alone, more electric cars were registered than were in stock in 2020.”says Romang. The growth is driven “by the increasing supply of electric cars and one of the best public charging networks with more than 15,000 charging points”. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that this is not enough.

When it comes to electromobility, Europe is increasingly split into three geographical blocks: “A Scandinavian bloc (which largely includes the Netherlands), a mediocre Central European bloc (which Switzerland has now also included) and a Southern and Eastern European bloc from Spain to Slovakia,” writes the electromobility association Swiss eMobility.

The graph shows it: By 2023, the Scandinavian countries (green lines in the graph above) will have split away. Switzerland (dark blue line) – still just in the top group in 2022 – is slowly but surely falling back into the European midfield. This is also because countries such as Belgium or Austria are growing much faster and could overtake us this year. In other words: wherever politicians create good preconditions, electric cars flourish.

Why the growth of electric cars in Switzerland is stagnating

“The electrification of the drive is not an absolute success,” says Romang. He expects that 2024 will be “a challenging year for electromobility”. This is also because the next tightening of CO₂-Emissions targets for passenger cars will not come into effect until 2025.

Auto Switzerland President Peter Grünenfelder sees it the same way: “From January 1, not only are electric cars no longer exempt from the four percent car tax due on import, but electricity prices in the US have also risen by an average of 18 percent. state-dominated energy market. Purchasing and using electric vehicles will be significantly more expensive for consumers in the coming year.” To make matters worse, e-car enthusiasts now drive electric cars, and now the masses need to be convinced.

Customers in other countries are also affected by the high purchase costs and rising electricity costs for electric cars. There must be more specific reasons why electric cars are not an absolute success in Switzerland. Swiss eMobility mainly attributes this to the lack of the 'right to charge'.

The e-car lobby has been demanding for years that renters and condominium owners have the legal right to install their own charging stations, just like in some other European countries. A corresponding motion failed in 2023.

Without the right to charge, electric cars remain unattractive to tenants and Switzerland has one of the highest rental prices internationally. Until now, it has mainly been homeowners who buy electric cars, because they can usually be easily charged at home.

According to the current TCS barometer on the acceptance of electromobility, more than half of the electric car owners surveyed have their own parking space with a power connection (53 percent). 14 percent can charge their electric car (additionally) at work. 23 percent use publicly accessible charging stations in the immediate vicinity of their home. However, those who cannot do this will in most cases refrain from purchasing an electric car. In 2023, the lack of a charging station at home was the main reason for 65 percent of respondents not to buy an electric car.

In addition, the growth of e-cars is largely driven by commercial vehicles. That's why countries like Austria have exempted electric cars from or reduced company car taxes to promote electromobility – and not Switzerland.

Ultimately, Switzerland is “far behind expectations” when it comes to the expansion of smart meters, writes Swiss eMobility. Digital and networked electricity meters are a prerequisite for intelligent electricity networks (smart grids) and vehicle-to-grid, i.e. the supply of electric power from the batteries of electric cars back to the public electricity grid to stabilize it.

Smart meters are therefore an important component for better localizing power fluctuations and for security of supply. The slow pace of smart meter expansion leads to a “lack of transparency regarding our electricity situation” and has contributed to “electric cars being under general suspicion across the country in the event of a power shortage,” according to the electromobility association. This is also hardly conducive to the growth of electromobility.

The electric car is here to stay

Despite everything: combustion engines have no long-term future in Europe. The electric car is catching on. Given the license plates, there is no longer any doubt about that.

Car manufacturers have switched to electric cars, raw material prices for batteries are falling and several affordable models worth R25,000 will be launched this year. This is made possible, among other things, by cheaper lithium iron phosphate batteries.

LFP batteries without cobalt offer slightly less range than conventional lithium-ion batteries at the same mass, but are more ecological, less susceptible to fire and, above all, enable a longer lifespan.