The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition, through the Fund for Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency, has published a call for grants “Purchase of electric vehicles for autotaxi transport service providers, delivery vehicle users and vehicle sharing service providers”. In this round of incentives, applicants can be micro, small, medium and large enterprises: auto taxi transport providers, users of delivery vehicles and car sharing service providers (car sharing).
The biggest investment in electromobility so far
The expected effect of the Call is the procurement of at least 5,000 electric vehicles, says FZOEU, which should achieve a total reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 15,938.90 tCO2 per year and energy savings of 84,924,66 MWh per year. The available amount of funds from the EU Modernization Fund within this Call is 45 million euros: 22 million for auto taxi transport providers, 20 million for users of delivery vehicles and 3 million for car sharing service providers – so this will be the largest state investment in electric mobility so far.
Registration will begin on January 15. This is also the first tender intended for the sectors with the largest daily mileage, and thus the greatest impact on air quality in cities. Taxis and delivery vehicles in Croatia cover an average of 60,000 to 120,000 kilometers per year, which is up to 10 times more than the average private vehicle, so replacing such a vehicle with an electric one has a many times greater effect on reducing emissions than replacing an average private vehicle.
Tender conditions
As in the competition for legal entities from October, car dealerships do not submit applications on behalf of customers. Applicants themselves open a user account, fill out the application and attach documentation. This makes the process more transparent, but also more demanding for those entering the application system for the first time. Fund documentation is available here.
It is also important to note that the following characteristics are acceptable costs for the purchase of a car:
- Acquisition of a new electric vehicle of category N1 (motor vehicles for the transport of goods whose maximum permissible weight does not exceed 3.5 t) with a useful battery capacity of 75 kWh and more,
- Acquisition of a new electric vehicle M1 category motor vehicles for the transport of passengers that, in addition to the driver’s seat, have a maximum of 8 seats) with a useful battery capacity of 40 kWh and more.
The maximum amount of funds that can be allocated for the financing of one vehicle as part of this Call is EUR 9,000. Micro and small entrepreneurs can subsidize up to 50% of the eligible costs of the value of the vehicle, for medium-sized enterprises this is limited to 40%, and for large enterprises to 30%.
“There are about five thousand taxis on Croatian roads today, and with this tender for the taxi sector alone, enough funds have been secured for about 2,500 of them to switch to electric vehicles. In other words, every second taxi driver can receive incentives,” noted the president of the electromobility association Strujni krug Hrvoje Prpić.