214 new electric vehicle charging points to be built in Estonia

TALLINN - Estonia's electric vehicle charging infrastructure will receive a significant upgrade in the coming years when a total of 86 new charging stations and 214 charging points will be built in the country with the support of the European Union.

According to Minister of Infrastructure Vladimir Svet, a prerequisite for more active use of electric vehicles is an extensive charging infrastructure.

"The future of electric vehicles depends on how conveniently and quickly drivers can charge their vehicles. Building new charging stations is an important investment that will contribute to making the Estonian transport sector more environmentally friendly and give people and companies confidence to start using electric cars," the minister said in a press release.

Today, there are almost 8,600 electric vehicles registered in Estonia, with nearly 975 public charging points available, or one public charging point for every nine electric vehicles. Support for the construction of an additional 214 charging points was allocated to the companies Ignitis, Elektrum and Eesti Energia, the latter of which has a charging network called Enefit Volt. In addition to Estonia, the companies are also contributing to the development of charging infrastructure in Latvia and Lithuania. In total, over 800 new electric charging points will be built in these regions.

Support will be allocated from the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Facility (AFIF) of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). The call for applications will support projects aimed at promoting alternative fuels infrastructure in the European Union, including the establishment of fast charging points for electric vehicles and hydrogen infrastructure.

A total of 422 million euros will be invested from this call for proposals to build around 4,900 electric vehicle charging stations and other alternative fuel charging infrastructure across the EU. The next call for proposals is open until June 11. Over 131 projects have been supported under the measure in six calls for proposals between 2021 and 2024, with more than 1.3 billion euros allocated.

It is also possible to apply for state support for the establishment of electric vehicle charging parks. Companies that have previously received support from the CEF for the same project can apply for state support. Additional state co-financing can be used, for example, for the purchase and installation of electricity storage devices, the establishment of an electricity grid connection, the purchase of renewable energy production equipment and other costs related to the establishment of charging infrastructure.

Soon, apartment associations and municipalities will also be able to apply for support for installing electric chargers next to apartment buildings. The state will allocate a total of one million euros for this. The support measure will be introduced in the first half of this year.