New e-mobility study by Roland Berger: CEE countries still lagging behind WE countries
New e-mobility study by Roland Berger: CEE countries still lagging behind WE countries – Key stakeholders need to act to profit from the region's promising e-mobility potential
Austria's e-mobility leadership is clear considering it has the highest number of registered electric vehicles (EVs) in the region (almost 600, of which 370 are in pilot projects). Two other key factors are the involvement of major Austrian utilities in pilot projects across five model regions and clear support from the authorities. The fast followers – Czech Republic and Poland – have smaller pilot projects in place (around 65 EVs in the Czech Republic, around 50 EVs in Poland) and limited government contribution. "Whereas the Austrian government aims to have 250,000 EVs on the streets by 2020 and offers subsidies for EV buyers of up to EUR 5,000 per car, there are no initiatives on a similar scale in either the Czech Republic or Poland," says Jan Sklenar, Senior Consultant in the Automotive Competence Center at Roland Berger's Prague office. Other CEE countries were classified as "followers" (Romania, Hungary, Slovenia, Slovakia) or "laggards" (Croatia), due mainly to constrained initiatives taken by their supply-side stakeholders (utilities and automakers).
Utilities and automakers show substantial interest in e-mobility only in Austria, Czech Republic and Poland – their involvement in pilot projects in other countries is minor. "CEZ is a good example of a utility as a true driving force of e-mobility in the Czech Republic, thanks to their pilot project and infrastructure building efforts," says Zsilinszky. E-mobility pilot projects should focus on generating know-how through testing infrastructure and business models, as this information will be critical to readjust the strategy before the large-scale business rollout.
Clear support from authorities is crucial, especially in the early stage of launching e-mobility programs. Limited contributions from government/municipalities does not mean that e-mobility "won't fly", just that it won't fly as soon or as high as it does in countries where they are more involved. "To boost e-mobility, authorities should dedicate an educated team, develop target-based strategies and define concrete actions, as Austria did," notes Zsilinszky.
E-mobility will play a crucial role in future transportation systems in CEE as well as in Western European countries. Almost one fourth of cars sold in 2025 in CEE are expected to be electric-powered, meaning over 640,000 new EVs on the streets every year. Although e-mobility has already been established in CEE, the genuine rise is not expected to start sooner than in 2015. Around then, mass production of EVs will be ramped up and the number of EV users is likely to grow, especially in the B2B segment initially. The B2C segment will become fully addressable as of 2020, by which time the production costs of EVs, batteries and other accessories will be even lower.
"The key question is no longer whether e-mobility will come, but rather how fast, where first and what can we do to accelerate it," says Zsilinszky. All stakeholders need to work hard on being ready for the full-scale launch of e-mobility. Early involvement will pay off as the demand ramp-up could turn out to be faster than expected; only players with turnkey solutions in place will be able to benefit from it. "Profitable business development depends on making the right decisions regarding products and value chain coverage, target customers, sales channels, pricing, billing and infrastructure approaches," notes Zsilinszky. Moreover, the cost burden could be less at the beginning as models and technologies could be tested through joint data collection. And finally, turning the concept into a practical reality will take several years, and many as yet unforeseen hurdles will emerge on the way. "Early involvement will ensure sufficient time to master all these challenges and thus provide a valuable advantage," concludes Zsilinszky.
- Best practices established by Germany, France or Denmark still not adopted by the CEE countries
- Austria ranked as regional "leader", Czech Republic and Poland clustered as "fast followers"
- Activity of utilities and automakers is low in all countries except Austria, Czech Republic and Poland – more involvement required
- No country but Austria has an e-mobility strategy in place – concrete actions needed from the authorities
- CEE region has high e-mobility potential – almost one-fourth of cars sold in 2025 are expected to be electric-powered
- Utilities and automakers need to start getting ready now to be ready for the coming e-mobility ramp-up
Austria is the regional "leader", Czech Republic and Poland "fast followers"
Austria's e-mobility leadership is clear considering it has the highest number of registered electric vehicles (EVs) in the region (almost 600, of which 370 are in pilot projects). Two other key factors are the involvement of major Austrian utilities in pilot projects across five model regions and clear support from the authorities. The fast followers – Czech Republic and Poland – have smaller pilot projects in place (around 65 EVs in the Czech Republic, around 50 EVs in Poland) and limited government contribution. "Whereas the Austrian government aims to have 250,000 EVs on the streets by 2020 and offers subsidies for EV buyers of up to EUR 5,000 per car, there are no initiatives on a similar scale in either the Czech Republic or Poland," says Jan Sklenar, Senior Consultant in the Automotive Competence Center at Roland Berger's Prague office. Other CEE countries were classified as "followers" (Romania, Hungary, Slovenia, Slovakia) or "laggards" (Croatia), due mainly to constrained initiatives taken by their supply-side stakeholders (utilities and automakers).
Increased involvement of utilities and automakers required
Utilities and automakers show substantial interest in e-mobility only in Austria, Czech Republic and Poland – their involvement in pilot projects in other countries is minor. "CEZ is a good example of a utility as a true driving force of e-mobility in the Czech Republic, thanks to their pilot project and infrastructure building efforts," says Zsilinszky. E-mobility pilot projects should focus on generating know-how through testing infrastructure and business models, as this information will be critical to readjust the strategy before the large-scale business rollout.
Concrete actions from governments/municipalities needed
Clear support from authorities is crucial, especially in the early stage of launching e-mobility programs. Limited contributions from government/municipalities does not mean that e-mobility "won't fly", just that it won't fly as soon or as high as it does in countries where they are more involved. "To boost e-mobility, authorities should dedicate an educated team, develop target-based strategies and define concrete actions, as Austria did," notes Zsilinszky.
CEE region with high e-mobility potential
E-mobility will play a crucial role in future transportation systems in CEE as well as in Western European countries. Almost one fourth of cars sold in 2025 in CEE are expected to be electric-powered, meaning over 640,000 new EVs on the streets every year. Although e-mobility has already been established in CEE, the genuine rise is not expected to start sooner than in 2015. Around then, mass production of EVs will be ramped up and the number of EV users is likely to grow, especially in the B2B segment initially. The B2C segment will become fully addressable as of 2020, by which time the production costs of EVs, batteries and other accessories will be even lower.
Utilities and automakers should start getting ready now
"The key question is no longer whether e-mobility will come, but rather how fast, where first and what can we do to accelerate it," says Zsilinszky. All stakeholders need to work hard on being ready for the full-scale launch of e-mobility. Early involvement will pay off as the demand ramp-up could turn out to be faster than expected; only players with turnkey solutions in place will be able to benefit from it. "Profitable business development depends on making the right decisions regarding products and value chain coverage, target customers, sales channels, pricing, billing and infrastructure approaches," notes Zsilinszky. Moreover, the cost burden could be less at the beginning as models and technologies could be tested through joint data collection. And finally, turning the concept into a practical reality will take several years, and many as yet unforeseen hurdles will emerge on the way. "Early involvement will ensure sufficient time to master all these challenges and thus provide a valuable advantage," concludes Zsilinszky.
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