Thoughts on the future of EV ownership

The automotive industry is undergoing a period of huge transformation, and our Kia teams are therefore questioning everything we know about the industry. I particularly enjoy thinking about how the future may look, and hearing perspectives from a range of voices. If you have spent some time thinking about the future of the industry, I would be really interested to know how you see the electric car developing.

I spoke recently at the Fleet Europe summit about my thoughts on EVs and the role they may play for fleets and mobility providers.

EVs for me are unquestionably the future. But there still remain barriers to their uptake, including uncertainty around range, charging infrastructure and charging capacity. These are all linked, and they make it difficult for drivers to decide when to make the switch from internal combustion to electric power – including private and fleet users. 

Personally, I am very optimistic for the future of the EV. And I believe people have a genuine desire to make greener choices. They just need the opportunity, incentives and tools to make it happen.

At Kia we already offer two battery EVs today, the e-Soul and e-Niro. Now, under our forward-looking ‘Plan S’ strategy, our goal is to offer a range of 11 EVs globally by 2025.

And as EV production prices continue to fall, and battery technology develops, the future of EV ownership will continue to become more attractive. For fleet users, price is a key consideration. I’m confident that, once EVs reach price parity with ICE vehicles, fleets in countries all over Europe will start to make the switch to electric. 

Another key consideration is infrastructure. We all agree that the wider charging network has more scope for development. Most EV owners will already have a good charge point at their home, but businesses can get involved, too. Companies providing workplace charging for employees will help cut down on range anxiety for many.

Of course, there is more work needed on public charging infrastructure as well, and at Kia we are working hard here. We recently joined IONITY, Europe's leading high-power charging network, offering 100% renewable fast-charging across Europe. We also recently launched ‘KiaCharge’ in several European markets, providing customers with access to the largest public charging network in Europe – around 160,000 charging points!

Looking ahead, ‘Vehicle-to-Grid’ (V2G) capability for EVs is an exciting area for development. V2G enables vehicles to ‘balance’ energy requirements across the whole grid when plugged in, particularly as we increase our reliance on renewable energy. Energy can be used both to charge cars from the grid, and power our homes from the car, depending on nationwide power use at any given moment. This technology has great potential, helping the grid to adapt to growing electricity usage and potentially even reducing the cost of driving and household power bills!

We are reaching an exciting point in the development of EVs now, and 2021 will see even more change. EVs continue to become more viable for private and fleet drivers, and with development accelerating it won’t be long before EVs become the default choice. Car manufacturers are doing all they can; the key is for governments to continue, despite the current pandemic, to offer incentives for electrified vehicles and create an environment in which they can flourish.