Europe can save around €10 billion in electricity grid investment by 2030 through smart management of electric vehicle charging, according to a study released today that warns of the need for grid reinforcement in all analyzed cities. The "Electricity Grids in Europe" report, commissioned by EIT Urban Mobility, ChargeUp Europe and ACEA and conducted by Siemens, indicates that around €24.7 billion in electricity distribution grid investment would be needed by 2030 to accommodate the projected growth of electric vehicles, a figure that could drop to around €14 billion with smart charging management.
The study, based on modeling 64 representative European cities, assesses the impact of electrifying passenger cars and light vehicles on distribution grids in the EU27 and three EEA countries. Siemens' expansion model projects that by 2030, 100% electric vehicles (BEVs) will represent 27.3% of the passenger car fleet in Sweden, 15.7% in Germany, 4.6% in Italy, 4.5% in Spain and 2.5% in Poland—a growth of between 3.4 and 5.3 times compared to 2024 levels.
The authors emphasize that charging behavior is as decisive as vehicle adoption itself, estimating that between 55% and 62% of electric vehicle owners in the analyzed cities will have access to home charging by 2030. Among the studied cities, Berlin leads investment needs with around €1.15 billion by 2030, followed by Amsterdam with over €1.1 billion and Munich with nearly €900 million.
Adriana Diaz, Director of Innovation and Strategy at EIT Urban Mobility, stated that "we cannot electrify mobility at scale without transforming how we manage our electricity grids," advocating for a holistic vision that unites mobility, energy and technology. Sigrid de Vries, Director-General of ACEA, warned that "vehicles are only part of the equation," calling for targeted grid investment and greater visibility of local capacity to unlock the flexibility of electric vehicles.
