Sixt is the first car rental company to offer corporates electric vehicles. Kasper Gjedsted tells ABTN that the scheme is proving a success
Business travellers in Copenhagen have a new way of travelling around the city. For the first time in Europe, a car rental company is offering corporates electric cars for their travellers.
The move has come from German car rental company Sixt which has added Citroën C1 ev`ies to its fleet in the Danish capital.
Sixt will also be offering the car to delegates at the United Nations World Climate Conference, for which it is the exclusive car rental partner, in December in the city.
The drive to invest in the new vehicles came from the corporates themselves, said Kasper Gjedsted, ceo of Sixt's Danish franchise.
Mr Gjedsted said Sixt's corporate customers were keen to take advantage of cheap Danish electricity, 19% of which comes from wind turbines.
"One of the reasons for us to take this car is because we had been asked to by our corporate customers, both foreign and from within Denmark," said Mr Gjedsted.
"We have a lot of corporate customers and municipal services that are using the electrics cars, and we've just had a large order from the Copenhagen fire brigade which is now using the cars to carry out building inspections."
Vesta, the world's largest manufacturer of wind turbines, has also signed a corporate agreement with Sixt for use of the C1 in Denmark.
According to Mr Gjedsted it would cost a green-conscious business traveller around £1.50 to fully charge the car, giving it a maximum range of 110km at 1.4p per km. A full charge, Mr Gjedsted claimed, would cover around 86% of the average European's transport need.
Mr Gjedsted admitted that the C1's main drawback was its short range compared to traditional fossil-fuelled vehicles making it impractical for long-distance driving.
But further savings are made on other charges associated with city driving, the C1's intended stomping ground, Mr Gjedsted explained.
According to Transport for London (TfL), the city's transport authority, electric cars do not have to pay the £8 per day congestion charge. This charge applies to a 17 sq mile (45 sq km) area of London and can cost the city driver up to £40 per week.
In Copenhagen it is free to park an electric car saving almost €28 (£25) per day. In London some car parks do offer free parking for electric cars, but the scheme is not as widespread as in Copenhagen.
The C1's intended use as a city car also addressed the problem of performance and top speed when compared to petrol vehicles, Mr Gjedsted said.
Mr Gjedsted described Denmark as an ideal test area because of its relatively small size and an abundance of "clean" wind-generated energy.
Corporate deals and discounts are available to customers who sign an agreement and "go green", Mr Gjedsted confirmed.
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Kasper Gjedsted |
He added: "It's a normal rental car, so we are offering our corporate customers the same opportunities to rent them for a discount if they make an agreement with us."
But a source close to rival car rental company Avis said the need for a network of charging points had proved a stumbling block to the widespread adoption of electric vehicles.
Mr Gjedsted said the C1's ability to charge from any normal household socket was crucial to Sixt's decision to invest in the car.
So far Sixt Denmark is the only franchise in Sixt's European network to offer the C1. But its increasing popularity since its launch this year is drumming up interest in the Czech Republic and Germany.
A spokesperson for Sixt in Germany, where the rental group is based, said electric vehicles were currently being tested in partnership with a leading German energy company ahead of a "long term investment".
www.sixt.com