EV demand is soaring, but so too are the costs for owners

While they’re cheaper to run than traditional petrol or diesel cars, the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland says fuel alone is 50%-60% cheaper, the cost of actually charging them is also increasing, according to new analysis published this month.

Minister for Transport and the Environment Eamon Ryan said this summer that Ireland has a “blank canvas to get it right” when it comes to ramping up electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the coming years.

“In Ireland, there are currently no specific guidelines that provide universal design recommendations for EV charging infrastructure,” he said. “We have a blank canvas to get this right — to be leaders in the world for accessibility and functionality.” 

A specific section within the Department of Transport was set up last year with a brief to paint this canvas and develop strategies for charging infrastructure and encouraging take-up of electric vehicles. But, as households were paying more for their electricity bills, so too the cost of charging an electric vehicle rose.

Analysis from Switcher.ie suggested that the average cost of charging an electric vehicle rose nearly 20% between the first half of 2022 and the end of that year.

It said Ireland was the ninth most expensive country in Europe to charge an electric car, costing an average of €19.87 per full charge and €5.79 to drive 100km. In Ireland, drivers of EVs pay five times more than those in the cheapest country in Europe for EVs.

Switcher.ie said the most expensive countries tend to have a higher EV market share of new car sales, with Denmark and Belgium the two most expensive countries.

The site’s commercial director Eoin Clarke said that while the cost of charging these cars is increasing across most EU countries, they cost nowhere as much to run as petrol or diesel vehicles.

“The average EU cost of charging is on the up, but prices still fluctuate hugely by country and depend on things like the use of renewables in the country's energy mix and the amount of levies and subsidies available,” he said.

As more drivers go electric, some EU governments are slowly phasing out initiatives like purchase grants or tax benefits, so now's the time to buy if you've been eyeing up an electric car.

Mr Clarke also said that money can be saved for household chargers by switching providers or over to tariffs designed for electric car drivers.

The issue of high costs for charging has also been highlighted by a relatively new lobby in this space, the Irish Electric Vehicle Association. It recently wrote to both Minister Ryan and eCars, the network of ESB-run public charging points, expressing its concerns over the cost of charging.

“We are very grateful for this service which has been primarily funded by the State,” chief executive Eamon Stack said. “However, our members were very surprised and concerned at the sudden increase in cost last year, over 100% increase.” 

He urged a reduction in the cost of charging to pre-Ukraine war levels and said the continued cost levels were unreasonable for several reasons.

“We strongly believe the increased cost will slow down the adoption of EVs which is contrary to Government strategy,” he said. “eCARS prices are comparable with some commercial providers, significantly higher than Tesla [€0.47], yet your service is primarily funded by the State. The high cost is being used by EV detractors to undermine the transition.” 

Mr Stack also said that the current en-route charging service does not always match the cost, and increased demand may have put pressure on the system. 

"The speed of charging at some key locations, e.g. Portlaoise Plaza, is well below the minimum 50kW required to allow adequate charging for those using these points for inter-city travel. EV drivers have to absorb these performance inadequacies with undue time on their behalf.” 

The Government’s at-best very ambitious and at-worst fanciful bid to have one million electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2030 is one it admits itself will be “difficult to achieve”.

For Ireland to meet its targets, along with crucial climate goals, there needs to be hundreds of thousands more electric vehicles on the roads in the coming years. The signs are pointing one way on electric car sales, at any rate, and that’s up. 

Between January and July 2023, there were 16,766 new electric cars licenced in Ireland. This was up 65% on last year, when 10,105 electric cars were sold.

Separate data from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) suggest a similar rise this year. Since 2019, the number of electric vehicles sold in Ireland has increased almost 600% according to SIMI.

SIMI put the surge down to a number of factors but said grants to incentivise purchase were key. “Improved supply and a greater range of new models available for motorists has supported this momentum behind EVs,” SIMI director general Brian Cooke said.

“The availability of SEAI grants to support positive decision-making has been key, and their retention beyond this year, along with other EV incentives, is vital if we want to build on this success. Taking a closer look at the EV registration numbers, the main driver of growth is from consumers, who do qualify for the grant, and account for over 76% of EV sales.” 

But, Mr Cooke added, this momentum couldn’t be allowed to stagnate.

“There also needs to be a focus on the business market, which without grant support really needs to see the extension of the BIK reliefs in Budget 2024, while investment in the public charging infrastructure is also crucial at this stage,” he said.

Despite these incentives, the fact does remain that electric vehicles are very expensive to buy outright and the second-hand market in such vehicles has yet to gather a sustained pace.

It also comes against the backdrop of reduced grants for electric vehicles introduced by the Government earlier this year. From 1 July, the maximum grant available was reduced to €3,500 from €5,000. The Government said it was making the move to “rebalance towards supporting EV charging infrastructure”.

The reduction in grants was criticised by transportation telematics company Geotab which said that, despite the positive uptick in sales, Ireland still has a job on its hands to reduce transport emissions.

Its vice president of UK and Ireland, David Savage, said: “While the figure looks impressive at first glance, the EPA’s latest Greenhouse Gas Emissions report revealed that transport was the only sector where emissions rose last year, despite increasing sales of Electric Vehicles.

Passenger cars were responsible for 53% of emissions in 2021 — more than heavy goods vehicles, light goods vehicles and buses combined. 

"So it is odd that the Government has reduced grants for EV purchases when Ireland is still at a relatively immature stage for electric vehicle adoption and with transport emissions headed in the wrong direction.” 

Mr Savage said that an intervention was also needed to boost the sales of light commercial vehicles “at the very least” to help turn that sector towards electric.

As of the end of 2022, the Government says there were 73,574 electric vehicles on Irish roads. Add in the almost 20,000 new electric cars licensed in Ireland so far this year, and we’re certainly still well short of the 2030 aim.

The Government has its own dedicated office — Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland (ZEVI) — within the Department of Transport set up to support the public and businesses to switch to zero emission vehicles.

ZEVI published the country’s first EV charging infrastructure strategy earlier this year, with an additional €15m scheme to help sports clubs install charge points in local communities across the country.

Mr Ryan said: “EV sales are sky-rocketing, but the new infrastructure we are planning should take away concern or worry that people might have about access to charging points.” 

In the future, the Government expects 80% of electric vehicle charging to happen at home, and a grant available at present allows households to claim up to €600 to offset the cost.

However, the public charging network aims to increase its capacity by 300% by 2025, meaning a network for up to 195,000 electric cars and vans by the middle of this decade. While there are tens of thousands of electric cars and vans on the roads already, there is still a long way to go to reach that mark.

Mr Ryan said that a key piece of work for ZEVI is the development of a national delivery plan for en-route charging later this year, with a “number of bespoke schemes in advanced stages of development”. 

Electric vehicle sales are surging as the Government hoped that they would, but a body of work remains to make the essential network around it as efficient and as affordable as possible.