European car manufacturers said on Monday that the European Union lacks charging points for electric cars and that installation is not keeping pace with vehicle sales.
Electric car sales have grown three times faster than the installation of charging points since 2017, according to a report released on Monday by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA).
The ACEA said the EU will need to install eight times more charging points every year by 2030.
With developed economies like the EU trying to wean themselves off fossil fuels to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the car industry is betting heavily on electric vehicles as an alternative to combustion engines.
“We need mass-market adoption of electric cars in all EU countries to achieve Europe’s ambitious CO2-reduction targets," said ACEA Secretary General Sigrid de Vries in a press release. "This will not happen without widespread availability of public charging infrastructure right across the region.”
The European Commission estimates 3.5 million charging points will be needed by 2030.
According to ACEA, getting to the 3.5 million target would mean installing 8,000 points per week until then, which is about three times the rate at which they're being installed now.
But the industry association also argued that 3.5 million won't be enough. According to ACEA, the EU will need 8.8 million by 2030, which means installing 22,000 every week - eight times the current rate.