The European energy crisis has affected the field of electric vehicles, and the low-cost advantage of charging is gradually disappearing

Europe's energy crisis has rippled through the electric vehicle sector.

On September 19, Tesla sent an email to European car owners saying that it was adjusting the price of Superchargers in Europe due to rising energy prices.

Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the Passenger Association, told the 21st Century Business Herald reporter: "Due to the energy crisis, the European market is currently showing a serious high price of electricity, which is further transmitted to the public charging field. ”

According to data from the pan-European electricity exchange Nord Pool, at 18:30 on September 21, the average price of the European power system was 249 euros / MWh, down significantly from 400 euros / MWh in mid-to-late August, but compared with the price of 101 euros / MWh in the same period last year, the year-on-year increase was still 146%. At present, the electricity delivery price in France and Germany is still hovering around 380 euros/MWh.

The European Union is vigorously promoting the process of electric vehicles. In June, the European Parliament voted to support the European Commission's legislative proposal to ban the sale of new combustion vehicles (passenger cars and light commercial vehicles) from 2035. In the EU's ambitious transition to electric vehicles, will the current energy crisis become a "roadblock"?

Charging station prices are increased

As the energy crisis intensifies, Europe's electric vehicle sector is being dragged down.

Tesla recently sent a price increase notice to European car owners, saying that "we are adjusting the price of Superchargers due to rising energy prices." It is reported that the price of each supercharger is different, on average the price has increased by 0.12 euros / kWh, after this price increase, most of the supercharger stations in Europe will be more than 0.6 euros / kWh. It should be noted that Tesla's price increase only includes superchargers, and does not affect the more frequently used home charging piles.

In addition to Tesla, other public charging stations in Europe have also seen price increases. British electric vehicle charging company Osprey also previously announced that the company's charging price will rise to 66p/kWh from July 25. Osprey explained that the price the company pays for electricity supply has tripled this year, and in the face of rising costs, price adjustments must be implemented to ensure operations.

"We realise this is a difficult time and we are now actively lobbying the government with our public charging peers to reduce the VAT rate on public charging from 20% to 5%." Osprey said.

In this energy crisis, Europe's gas-electricity-electricity price transmission mechanism is actually affecting consumers.

　From the perspective of gas-electricity, due to the marginal cost pricing mechanism, the price of electricity in Europe is basically determined by the gas price. The reporter explained, "Europe's electricity marketization degree is very high, and mainly uses marginal cost pricing, that is, in the spot market, the transaction price is settled according to the marginal electricity price, when the marginal cost is high, the electricity price also becomes high, natural gas as the usual marginal power supplier, basically determine the price trend." ”

Recently, European gas and electricity prices have fallen, but they are still at historical highs. As of press time, the October futures price of Dutch TTF natural gas in Europe's "natural gas price vane" was reported at 200 euros / MWh, a sharp drop from the 300 euro mark previously broken, but still nearly 5 times higher than the same period last year. In terms of electricity prices, the price of electricity delivery in France and Germany was 380 euros/MWh, and the United Kingdom was quoted at 245 euros/MWh, and the price in these countries was only about 150 euros/MWh in the same period last year. After the price of electricity rose, charging station operators, as downstream enterprises, cost pressure rose, and price increases have also become a response for some charging station companies.

Cost advantage waning?

With the rise in electricity prices, is Europe's electric vehicle cost advantage weakening?

An investor in the asset management industry told the 21st Century Business Herald: "First of all, Tesla's price increase mainly affects public charging piles, and on the whole, most of the demand sources of public charging networks are commercial vehicles and commercial vehicles, and the cost of household charging piles more commonly used by individual consumers is significantly lower than that of commercial charging piles, for them, the cost advantage is still there."

EU's electric vehicle "ambitions"

In Europe's journey towards green goals, electric vehicles are also an important part.

In June, the European Parliament cast a key vote in favor of the European Commission's legislative proposal to ban the sale of new fuel vehicles from 2035, including hybrid models. This means that after 2035, in the field of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, pure electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles will cover the EU automotive market.

From today's data, Europe's electric vehicle market share is not very high. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), pure electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for only 9.1% of the total number of new passenger car registrations in the EU last year.

Regardless of the intensity of the transition, according to the experts interviewed, ditching fuel vehicles and moving towards net zero emissions will be a firm goal for Europe. "If significant progress is made in the energy transition, even if the resistance is significant, electromobility will remain a major trend in the transformation of the European automotive industry.

It is worth mentioning that Tesla is also seeking a larger European market share. Taking Germany as an example, in 2021, Tesla sold more than 39,000 vehicles in Germany in 2021. Recently, Tesla executives revealed that Tesla's goal this year is to double its car sales in Germany to 80,000 vehicles.