Sales of electric cars are on the rise and end customers are aware of the benefits offered by integrating a rooftop photovoltaic system with a wall-box to charge their electric vehicles. On top of that, more than half of the installers in four of the core European markets are already offering e-mobility solutions. This means that the stage is set for the mobility transition to succeed.
Bonn. Despite an overall still low market penetration, sales of electric cars are sharply increasing in the eight European focus countries of the Global PV InstallerMonitor 2019/2020© – the annual survey which gathers the views of about 1,100 PV installers across the eight European core markets and Australia by EuPD Research. The number of electric cars registered in Germany in the first quarter of 2020 more than doubled compared to the first quarter of 2019. The growth figures are even more impressive for France and Italy, where the number of registered electric cars increased by 144% and 268% respectively.
One-third of the PV owners want to optimize their self-consumption by using the electricity produced by their PV-system to charge their electric car.
The choice to buy an electric car is often based on the willingness to contribute to the shift toward a more sustainable mobility. Nevertheless, this does not mean that EV owners have to bear the costs of the energy transition themselves. According to the EndCustomer Monitor 9.0©, the annual survey carried out by EUPD Research among German end customers owning a PV system, the main driver motivating the purchase of an electric car is the possibility to charge its battery with a wall-box using the electricity generated by a rooftop PV system. Such set-up increases the share of self-consumption and makes the investment in both a PV system and an electric car very convenient from an economic perspective.
More than half of the PV installers in Italy, Austria, Germany and Switzerland offers solutions related to e-mobility.
These results are even more interesting if compared with the information contained in the Global PV InstallerMonitor 2019/2020©. In fact, installers prove again that having access to first-hand information and knowing how to leverage them is crucial to anticipate market trends and gain a competitive advantage. It is therefore not surprising that in four of the eight European markets more than half of the interviewed installers are already offering solutions related to e-mobility.
The readiness of PV installers to support the growth of the e-mobility sector is a powerful signal for end customers and all the stakeholders in the industry; one of the main concerns preventing end customers to purchase an electric car is in fact related to charging. Nevertheless, PV installers are a reliable point of contact for end customer, which can be guided throughout the sales process and be informed about the different available solutions.
The key role played by PV installers consists in their expertise in delivering fully integrated systems enabling customers to collect solar energy from the rooftop, optimise their consumption through smart solutions, store electricity surpluses and charge their EVs with a wall-box. Such fully integrated systems constitue the building blocks of the energy transition.
About the Global PV InstallerMonitor 2019/2020©
The 12-th edition of the study carried out by EuPD Research deals with the topics of brand management, market penetration, procurement and satisfaction with respect to modules, inverters, wholesalers and storage systems. EuPD Research surveyed a total of about 1100 PV installers in Australia, Austria & Switzerland, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain. Many evaluations are displayed on brand levels. Further information about the study can be found here. If you have any questions, please contact Davide Pesenti, Associate Research Analyst at EuPD Research under + 49 22897143-35 | d.pesenti(at)eupd-research.com.
About the EndCustomer Monitor10.0©
In its 10th edition of the EndCustomer Monitor, EuPD Research analyzes the purchase behavior of PV system owners and those planning to invest in solar PV, as well as latest trends. Topics such as market awareness, brand choice, recommendation of PV modules, inverters and battery storage are once again key components of the study. This year, the study focuses on electric mobility and battery storage. The report will be published at the end of August. If you have any questions, please contact Davide Pesenti, Associate Research Analyst at EuPD Research under + 49 22897143-35 | d.pesenti(at)eupd-research.com.
