Study: Willingness to pay for renewable mobility restrained
Published: Friday, Oct 18th 2024, 11:20
Updated At: Friday, Oct 18th 2024, 13:00
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In Switzerland, the willingness to pay for mobility with renewable energies and the lowest possible greenhouse gas emissions is restrained. This is the result of a study conducted by opinion research institute GfK on behalf of car importer Amag.
For 63 percent of those surveyed, this so-called "renewable mobility" would be important, according to an Amag press release on Friday. The car importer includes greenhouse gas emissions in the three phases of production, use and recycling.
However, the willingness to pay more for this is restrained. Around a third of respondents do not want to pay more for this reason. In contrast, 10 percent are prepared to pay up to 4 percent more. Around 20 percent could imagine paying up to 10 percent more, and just under a quarter would pay up to 15 percent more.
49 percent of respondents want climate-friendly energy sources to power their cars, and for 39 percent the type of drive plays a role, Amag continued: "Over 50 percent of respondents see electromobility as the technology of the future."
Fall in e-car sales
However, actual car purchases are currently putting a damper on electromobility: this year, the market share of purely electric vehicles fell to 18.7% at the end of September. A year ago, the market share had almost reached the 20 percent mark at 19.8 percent.
According to figures from the Swiss Automobile Association, 32,800 pure battery vehicles were newly registered in Switzerland and Liechtenstein between January and September. This is almost one percent less than a year ago. The decline in hybrid cars with plugs was also almost 7 percent. In contrast, mild hybrids increased by over 15 percent.
Several braking factors
The transition away from combustion engines to e-mobility requires safety and confidence, explained Amag CEO Helmut Ruhl. What is needed is a secure and affordable power supply, sufficient and easily accessible charging options and attractive and affordable vehicles.
Discussions about a possible electricity shortage and the complicated access to charging facilities for tenants and condominium owners are also slowing things down. The abolition of the import tax exemption on electric vehicles would also slow down the ramp-up of electromobility, said Ruhl: "We can do better on all of these issues."
According to a recent survey conducted by Sotomo, 75 percent of people in Switzerland can imagine buying an electric car in principle, Amag wrote. However, only 23 percent intend to switch to electric mobility in the near future.
Amag wants to take countermeasures
The most frequently cited reasons for not switching to e-cars include the lack of range, the high purchase price, the lack of charging options and non-transparent charging tariffs.
Amag wants to counteract this with several offers. The importer of the VW, Cupra/Seat, Skoda and Audi brands is launching a new e-car subscription and a low charging tariff. For companies with car fleets, there is an offer with a charging card and charging app for on the road, charging options at the workplace and a simple billing solution for charging at home.
Sales target no longer achievable
Car sales at Amag have also slumped. In the first nine months, total sales fell by almost 11 percent. This was partly due to the fact that some older models were not available. At the end of September, VW, Audi, Seat/Cupra and Skoda had a market share of 29.6 percent compared to 31.9 percent a year ago.
The VW Group has now set off a firework display of new models, said Amag CEO Helmut Ruhl in an interview with AWP Video on the sidelines of a media conference at Zurich Airport. This year, Amag will achieve the highest market share in its history with the exception of last year and the corona years.
Overall, however, the Swiss car market is weakening even more than feared. By the end of September, sales had fallen by around 4 percent to just under 176,000 vehicles.
The annual target of 260,000 new cars this year is no longer achievable, said Ruhl. The company now expects to sell slightly fewer than 250,000 new cars in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. This is the fifth year in a row with sales of around 250,000, which is well below the long-term average of 300,000 cars sold.
©Keystone/SDA
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