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No going back

While the Government’s plans to end lockdown restrictions in England may be dominating mass media headlines at the moment, recent weeks have also seen key dates announced for the switch to electric vehicles from manufacturers.

Building on the Government’s confirmation that it will implement a ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 – with hybrids allowed until 2035 – Jaguar and Ford have both announced plans to move to electric-only model ranges.

Under the new Reimagine strategy, Jaguar is set to be relaunched as an all-electric luxury brand from 2025 while six pure electric Land Rover models will also arrive.

Ford, on the other hand, is to make its passenger vehicle range all-electric in Europe by 2030, with an interim target for all such vehicles to be zero-emissions capable, all-electric, or plug-in hybrid by mid-2026. Meanwhile, two-thirds of its commercial vehicle sales are expected to be all-electric or plug-in hybrid by 2030.

There’s no doubt that the 0% Benefit-in-Kind rate confirmed in the 2020 Budget piqued fleets’ interest in EVs. But there’s more work that needs to be done in the imminent 2021 Budget. We’ve taken the opportunity to look at what’s needed for further growth in EV fleet, asking the experts for their input and the result is the feature on page 16.

With the announcements of new models and plans, and just nine years now until the 2030 ICE engine ban, manufacturers are certainly getting ready for the move to electrification – but what about the impact on fleet? The extension for full hybrid and PHEV models will provide a lifeline in the transition, but success seems to hinge on convincing fleet that this technology is affordable, the vehicle has enough range to suit their needs and that they will be able to charge as easily as filling up. Check out this story for more info.

We’ve also got all the details on Hyundai’s new modular EV platform, which will underpin future Hyundai and Kia EV models. If you can’t wait that long, we’ve updated the list of incoming new electric cars and vans on the horizon, see page 3 for more details.

I hope you enjoy this issue, and don’t forget to check out the final page for the latest EV Fleet World news.

Martyn Collins Editor

We’re proud to be sponsoring this edition of EV Fleet World. Electrification is a topic that we’ve been passionate about for quite some time and we’re committed to helping fleets and fleet managers discover the benefits of electric vehicles for themselves. One of our key business goals is for our entire funded fleet to be net zero emissions by 2030.

For some fleets, making the switch to electric is straightforward, but we recognise that for many others, it’s a gradual process and it may be difficult to get started. This is one of the reasons we created our new LeasePlan Flexible service. It gives companies an easy way to introduce EVs into their fleets – or even just test the viability of EVs in key roles.

The service can do this because it is built around flexibility. This is something we know is always important to businesses, but the value is even clearer right now. After all, it’s hard to make long-term plans about fleet expansion when the situation over the coming months is so unclear.

With LeasePlan Flexible, fleets can access a range of low-emission, low-BiK cars for as little as three months – but with the freedom to keep them for as long as they need, with no costly or inconvenient swaps. If you’ve been holding back on introducing EVs to your fleet, it could be just what you need to get things moving.