Yet talk about a genuine consolidation of sustainable means of transport, does not only involve technical aspects. "We have an erroneous concept of the electric car," she insists, and generally the first thing that comes to mind is of a vehicle of two, four or more wheels with a non-combustion engine. "It is an image that is totally wrong," she says, "what we should do is think about a smartphone on wheels."
What do you mean by a smartphone on wheels?
That we have to get the word vehicle out of our heads. Until now cars are all we've known, so the brain substitutes the conventional engine for an electric one when we talk about these automobiles. In fact, the only thing they have in common is that they both have wheels, because the brain of an electric car, the heart, veins, arteries and everything is like a smartphone.
You mean it's a smart car?
No, it means it needs to be plugged in like a telephone to charge and work. As with a telephone or security alarm, the car is totally digital and can be dealt with from a central point. It can also be updated if in a few months a new version comes out. But the most important point, and what makes it into a smartphone on wheels, is that it has an ion battery like the telephone, just a bigger one.
It has a battery that has to be recharged to be able to use the vehicle.
Exactly. You usually plug in your telephone when you go to bed so as to have it at 100% the next day, eight to ten hours later. It's the same with the car, which can be recharged when you decide or for when you need it. It will be ready because it only charges when you have finished with the washing machine, the drier... because it is plugged in at home, to your meter. That means the cost is marginal, as all you have to do is install a cable in the garage and plug it in. In other words, it doesn't cost more than a Euro, because the supply charge is more than the energy charge, which is the variable part. You already have a contract for the supply, and not everyone has to change it.
And when you run out of battery when away from home, there will be an expanding network of charging stations.
We estimate that in 2019 there will be some 25,000 electric cars. So, the aim is to reach that year with 25,000 charging points in homes, 400 semi-fast charging stations, which will take an average of 2 hours to charge and which will be in bars, restaurants…, and 100 fast charging stations taking 30 minutes to charge, which will be more expensive because it depends on the power supply. However, you normally recharge your telephone at home, and only when you are out in an emergency. It will be the same with the car, for which there will be an extra payment. We currently have some 1,400 petrol stations in Catalonia. Do we need 1,400 charging stations? No, because you don't have petrol at home, but you do have electricity. Right now these stations are public and free, but one day they won't be because we all need to make a living.
Do they work like the Tesla charging stations?
Tesla is it's own thing, they have perfected the technology and are installing 120 kw chargers because their cars have very powerful batteries. If there's one thing that tells us we're doing it right it is that Tesla is choosing strategic points very close to ours. We have put one in Amposta, they in Aldrea; we in Reus, they La Canonja... We have only coincided in Girona. There are only a few points, but we'll be connected to different roads so that you only have to go a minute out of your way to get to one. Right now there are very few cars and progress is slow because everything is being done in the public sector; the private sector is not putting any money in, except for Tesla.
Aren't manufacturers interested?
You should ask them! What I see very clearly is that if you want to put new technology on the market, first you have to supply it. A good example is the Nespresso coffeemaker. At first they were only in bars and offices, and the machine and the coffee were bought together. If you sell coffee and you don't make the coffeemaker, you can't do anything. When the electric vehicle was put forward it was not sold well. I believe that the automobile brands have interpreted it as a car with an electric engine and four wheels, and only Tesla has seen it as a smartphone that needs a charging infrastructure.
In the same way that Tesla came out of nowhere, do you think we will see another manufacturer making a firm commitment to the electric car or engine?
Things have been happening in the case of electric motorbikes. Scutum, for example, have made their own with a removeable battery, which can be taken home and recharged without having to depend on the network. The battery weighs much less and is smaller than those in cars, and can be turned into a trolley to move it easily. With cars it is more difficult, not everyone can set up a private infrastructure with charging stations like Tesla and nor do they have Elon Musk's money.
Apart from the charging network, what else is required to see more of these vehicles circulating?
It needs the trust of the public, for people to know that the product works and can be recharged. There are already 450,000 people in the United States who have put down a deposit to get a Tesla within a few years. This company has managed to win trust because it has invested in the charging network, while other manufacturers have not. It will need time for the private sector to do what Tesla has done, which is to go from nothing to being among the top 10 vehicle manufacturers.
In the first quarter of 2016, some 5.7% more alternative vehicles were sold in Spain. It seems as if the public is gradually becoming more aware.
It is! But what we have seen with early adopters is that they make the leap because they like technology, but now it has to reach the average citizen. That is why measures have been taken like making motorways free for electric vehicles. However, from here on what needs to be done is facilitate connections and provide strategic coverage with the network. We are already working with two associations of installers to train professionals who will be able to install charging points in homes.
So, it also has to be seen as a development that will create jobs.
Obviously. We are talking of mechanics who can connect from a central point to see what is wrong with your car, of technicians who can make vehicles, the network, the meters smart… everything has to be digital. There is also the issue of batteries. It is not so much about manufacturing them, as large factories are being set up all over the world, but rather it is about the packaging after that, something we can do from here. Mobility will create as many jobs as the advent of smartphones did. But none of that will happen if there is not already a network to incentivise the purchase of the vehicles. That is why we insist on saying that the participation of manufacturers is vital. Nissan is one of the few conventional brands that, despite coming late to the party, is quickly reacting and facilitating the installation of charging points at home.