Procurement for Electric Car Chargers Launched
A public procurement was declared by the state's credit fund KredEx for constructing the planned nationwide network of electric car charging stations.
The 250 charging centers, to be built by 2013, will be located along the main highways and in larger towns, including Tallinn, Tartu, Narva, Pärnu, Viljandi, Kuressaare and Kohtla-Järve. The express chargers will be capable of charging 80 percent of an empty battery in 30 minutes, the government has said.
In March, the government sealed a deal with Mitsubishi to buy 507 electric cars in exchange for trading 10 million carbon dioxide credits. The i-MiEV make cars, which are to arrive in December, will be given to state social workers.
Money from Mitsubishi will also be used to promote private consumption of electric cars, subsidizing the first 500 buyers, who will be required to recharge from renewable sources. The government said the move will be a step toward its goal to overhaul 10 percent of transport sector to rely on renewable energy by 2020.
"Through the implementation of the electric cars program, Estonia will likely have one of the world's most dense and innovative express charging networks, as well as the highest number of electric cars per capita," said the announcement by the government's communications bureau commenting the March 3 decision.
Ott Tammik