While electric cars are catching on in the rest of the world, they are practically unnoticeable in Ukraine. Greener, fuel-free vehicles remain a curiosity only to enthusiasts.
Pike Research, a U.S.-based clean technology specialist, forecasts that more than 1.8 million battery electric vehicles will be on Europe’s roadways by 2020. Germany has its own plan of reaching 1 million electric cars by that year, according to Chancellor Angela Merkel.
In Ukraine there are more than 200 hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery operated electric vehicles in Ukraine, of which 92 were registered in 2012, according to traffic police data.
Vitaly Vorontsov, a 44-year-old executive in Kyiv, owns one of them. He bought his four-seat electric car as a second family vehicle out of curiosity. “I am a gadget fan and am always ready to try something technically new,” Vorontsov says.
The new toy cost him about Hr 180,000, or $22,500.
Vorontsov admits that when he bought the electric-powered car he didn’t think about the environment or saving money on fuel. But he was very happy to discover its advantages. “While I pay $100 a week on gasoline for my fuel-run car, the electric car takes just Hr 30 worth of charging per week,” Vorontsov says. “I feel as if I don’t have to pay at all.”
The car’s helium battery lasts long enough for the car to cover 120 kilometers of road. In the winter, the battery runs out faster because of the heater. It takes six to eight hours to charge the car with use of an ordinary 220-volt power socket. Vorontsov feeds his car when he gets home, but carries an extension chord with him at all times, and never misses a chance to power up elsewhere.
Frequent charging is not a big deal for Vorontsov, who thinks that his electric vehicle is a great city car and is ideal for short-distance travel.
Serhiy Bogush, commercial director of Bio Auto, which sells electric cars made by Hong Kong-based BIO Automotive Co, says that Vorontsov sounds like a typical electric car owner.
“Today’s electric cars buyers in Ukraine are middle-class, middle-aged, have a family, calculate their expenses, and understand that buying an electric car makes a contribution to nature preservation,” Bogush says.
According to Bogush, 30 autos were sold in 2012 in the price range of $16,000 to 22,000. While Bogush admits that the car is more expensive than conventional ones, he says that the savings made by the low cost of charging compensates for the price of purchase – that is, if you can find where to charge it on the road.
Poor infrastructure is one of the problems stalling the sale of electric vehicles. Lots of investment is required, and, more importantly, the support of local governments and their dedication to building networks for quick charging. “No matter how rich and powerful a private company is, it won’t get the matter moving alone,” Bogush says.
Powerful stations can charge a battery within 20 minutes, and they cost $20,000 to install. And Ukraine currently has none.
Corporate interest in electric vehicles is starting to emerge, however. DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private vertically integrated energy holding that belongs to richest Ukrainian Rinat Akhmetov, bought three electric Mitsubishi i-MiEV vehicles in the summer for corporate needs.
The company said it was a pilot project, which could evolve into something bigger, including the creation of a network of recharging stations. Oleksander Tolkach, external relations director at DTEK, told the Kyiv Post that the pilot project is still running a half-year later.
“To make conclusions about the future of the project, we need results of examination including that of the use of electric vehicles in winter conditions,” Tolkach said in email comments.
Tolkach added that DTEK is assessing proposals to construct recharging stations. “We can make a decision only after the pilot project ends,” he said.
The emerging industry also has a shortage of car servicing stations. Bogush of BIO Auto says his company is working with existing conventional networks to service electric vehicles. Vorontsov thinks that quicker changes in infrastructure will accelerate when the number of electric vehicles on the road reaches a critics mass and will become too good of an opportunity to pass up for businesses and local authorities.
Such a shift can occur if electric vehicles become a must for taxi or food delivery services. Bogush says local authorities in Yalta like the idea of having electric taxis, but there’s still a long way to go before the plan receives official approval.
Kyiv Post staff writer Denis Rafalsky can be reached at [email protected]
