MOVE 2024 opened its doors today to the global mobility ecosystem. In the keynote theatre this morning, the first panel brought together industry-leaders who are leading innovation in the sector.
The first panel this morning titled “Driving confidence in EV adoption” was joined by Sainsbury’s, NIO, Octopus Electric Vehicles, Scania, Centrica and National Grid.
From each panellist came a varied rating out of 10 for confidence in European adoption of EV vehicles.
Patrick Dunne, Chief Property & Procurement Officer from Sainsbury’s, claimed he was a 12 on that scale and even claimed that Sainsbury’s operations “will be net-zero by 2035”. He said that consumers and commercial users of EVs might not feel the same.
“The consumer confidence and commercial confidence today is not yet there, thats our job to drive that forwards,” said Dunne from Sainsbury’s.
Rob Simister, a Director at Centrica, claimed that 80% of Centrica’s current company cars are battery EVs, and further claimed that by end of 2025 that number will rise to 100%.
Steve Smith, a President at National Grid, shed light on what the pressures of EV uptake demands from the electrical grid:
“If we try to electrify transport then you probably need a grid four times the size as the one we have today,” said Smith from National Grid.
Kajsa Ivansson Sognefur, Head of Power Europe at NIO, said that her company is trying to aid the grid as much as it can. She detailed how NIO are helping to balance the grid. Their charging tech reportedly reacts accordingly to any changes in the grid to help continue balancing it.
Keynote panel “Driving confidence in EV adoption” speakers:
Patrick Dunne, Chief Property & Procurement Officer, Sainsbury’s
Kajsa Ivansson Sognefur, Head of Power Europe, NIO
Fiona Howarth,CEO,Octopus Electric Vehicles
Gustaf Sundell, EVP and Head of Ventures and New Business, Scania
Rob Simister, Director – Fleet Operations, Centrica plc
Steve Smith, President, National Grid Partners and Group Head of Strategy, Innovation and Market Analytics, National Grid
Moderator: Roger Atkins, Founder, Electric Vehicles Outlook Ltd
