Hungary presents proposals to develop European electromobility

Marton Nagy told a press conference that it was necessary to coordinate the measures aimed at boosting electromobility given the diverse strategies in member states.

Detailing the package, Nagy said Hungary’s proposals included the development of charger infrastructure, the easing of regulatory burdens in the interest of improving competitiveness, and prioritising technology-neutral procedures and the circular economy in the green transition. Concerning the charger infrastructure, he said facilities should be built at every 50 kilometres next to roads, while 80 percent of petrol stations should be similarly equipped. He urged that the EU should launch a programme to support development of the public system and provide grants between 900 and 1,500 euros to each household installing their own charger.

Under the Hungarian proposal, European citizens should receive a grant of 4,500 euros each to buy an electric vehicle, the minister said. He added it was important that subsidies should be provided on an individual basis to help people buy or lease second-hand electric cars. He also urged launching a European programme to renew corporate fleets aimed at speeding up replacement of traditional medium-size and heavy vehicles and buses for electric ones.

The package is also aimed at promoting technology-independent procedures for the replacement of batteries as well as mandatory recycling of batteries, Nagy added.

He noted that the proposals put forward at Tuesday’s meeting of the Competitiveness Council urged joint European action and supported European competitiveness as well as the green transition.