Austria increases budget to support electric cars

Demand for electric cars in Austria is high, so the Ministry of Environmental Protection, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology has decided to increase this year's budget to support the purchase of an electric vehicle. Minister Leonore Gewessler said on Thursday that another 55 million euros would be added to the current 46 million euros. State aid applies to electric cars, electric motorcycles and charging infrastructure. The reason for the budget increase is the fact that the volume of funding for this year will be exhausted in the coming weeks. This year is a record year for electric vehicle registrations in Austria. By May, these vehicles accounted for 10.8% of registrations, reaching a share of 12% in May alone. According to Gewessler, the additional funding is to make it possible to "gain support for everyone who wants to buy an electric car". The highest demand was recorded in the segments of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, as well as the construction of charging infrastructure. The Austrian government and car importers support private purchases in the amount of EUR 5,000, provided that the list price of the vehicle does not exceed EUR 60,000. Plug-in hybrids are only supported if they have a range of more than 50 kilometers in pure electric mode. Diesel hybrids can be obtained from the state 1,200 euros, for the construction of a charging station up to 1800 euros. This year, for the first time, it is possible to obtain support for the purchase of a charging station without buying an electric vehicle.