Industry Shake-outs, EV Charging Roll-Outs & hot new Mobility Startups - Europe's 2022 Year in Review

2022 will go down as the year of the reality check for electric vehicle (EV) startups around the world. The year started on an exhuberant note with a number of companies unveiling EVs, raising funds or floating on the world's stock markets. But the party didn't last.

Rising interest rates and sinking tech stocks hit the mobility market particularly hard. Raising new capital has become a big challenge. A war in Ukraine hasn't helped.

Adrian Smith has our Europe year in review.

Market Hangover

Arrival, the much-heralded UK EV startup, achieved a number of milestones in 2022. It produced the first production verification vehicle from its UK Microfactory, and it started trials of the Arrival Bus at a testing facility. But its share price swooned on the Nasdaq.

In November, its CEO and founder, Denis Sverdlov, stepped down from his role as CEO and was appointed as Chairman of the Board. He was replaced by Peter Cuneo, the former CEO of Marvel Entertainment. The Hyundai-backed company had previously announced job cuts in the UK, plans to focus on the US market and the need to raise more capital.

Cuneo stated: “I intend to bring the full depth of my experience to this operational role, ensuring that the Company executes on its next set of strategic goals. I look forward to working closely with Denis, the rest of the Board and our employees for the benefit of all Arrival’s stakeholders.”

Cuneo will certainly need superhero powers as he plots to get Arrival back on track next year.

Clouds on the Horizon

In Germany, the sun may be going down on the Sion. Sono Motors launched a campaign to save the Sion, its solar-electric vehicle. It wants to gain 3,500 new reservations. If it can't complete the campaign, the Munich-based company intends to stop making cars and focus on its capital-light, revenue-generating solar B2B business.

In a statement, Jona Christians and Laurin Hahn, CEOs and co-founders of Sono Motors, said: "There are pioneers out there who crave innovation – so let's do it. Let's take matters into our own hands and show politicians, investors, policymakers, and corporations what true action looks like. For a world without burning fossil fuels." 

Business Challenges And Shifting Habits

It's not all doom and gloom. The roll-out of EV charging networks and stations has continued apace here in Europe. Amsterdam-based Fastned built more stations than in any year before. It intends to reach its goal of one thousand stations before 2030. 

In Italy, Volkswagen Group and Enel X Way, the Enel Group’s company dedicated to electric mobility, launched their equally-owned joint venture Ewiva, which aims to accelerate the development of high-power charging (HPC) network across the country. 

The UK's EO Charging designs and manufactures EV charging stations and cloud-based management software for EV fleets. In 2022 it unveiled its latest generation of commercial and home smart chargers - the EO Genius 2 and EO Mini Pro 3.

"There’s no doubt that 2022 has been another challenging year for many businesses. The invasion of Ukraine in February sent shockwaves through the global markets, and we have felt the impact of this geo-political instability through our own operations at EO, but also in the conversations we’re having with our customers," says EO Charging's CEO, Charlie Jardine.

The war in Ukraine directly led to an energy crisis in Europe. It hit companies as well as the general population. However, it also opened the eyes of many to Europe's dependence on imported fossil fuels. Jardine believes a smarter approach to energy consumption is now a necessity.

"I believe the crisis has demonstrated the fragility of our energy system - and for our EV customers more specifically - the importance of smarter energy usage. Whether that’s energy savings measures made within the home or office - everyone is considering how they can reduce their consumption," says Jardine.

He adds: "We’ve certainly seen a shift in charging habits. Whilst the cost of running an electric car is still cheaper than its petrol or diesel counterparts, the rising price of electricity has made EV drivers think more carefully about when and how they charge, favouring off-peak hours when electricity is at its cheapest."

The prices of raw materials such as cobalt, lithium and nickel have also surged over the last twelve months, and this may have an impact on the growth of the EV market.

"To put this into context, in May 2022 lithium prices were over seven times higher than at the start of 2021. This is partly driven by geo-political instability - Russia supplies over a fifth of all nickel - but also the unprecedented demand for batteries," explains Jardine.

"That said, we’ve already seen market growth as global supply chain issues started to ease in the second half of the year, which would suggest that the EV market is stabilising and putting us in good stead for 2023."

Learning to Love Electrification

In terms of autonomous technology, some startups are mulling over how to commercialise the sector.

"To unlock the enormous benefits that AVs can bring to society, we need to build AV technology that can adapt to the needs of people and businesses worldwide," explained Kaity Fischer, Vice President of Commercial at Wayve, a UK company pioneering AI technology to power self-driving vehicles.

Looking ahead to 2023, and beyond, there are plenty of positives. With the European Union effectively banning the sale of new ICE vehicles from 2035, we can expect plenty of EV unveilings from the big OEMs. Micro and shared mobility companies should also benefit from the EU ruling.

LAVOIE, an exciting new UK micro-mobility startup that's backed by McLaren Applied, released its first product in 2022. It aims to launch and roll-out one product a year.

"This year has been difficult for a lot of companies, but we are optimistic for 2023 and the micro-mobility market. As things hopefully improve across the globe, more and more people will embrace micro-mobility as the most logical, quick, clean and efficient method of transport to enhance their lives," Eliott Wertheimer, co-founder, LAVOIE told Auto Futures.

EO Charging's Jardine offered this outlook for next year: "I’m certain some of the challenges of 2022 - such as global supply chain issues and vehicle backorders - will carry over into the new year, but I’m also optimistic. Recent data and predictions suggest that EV growth is set to continue over the next 12 months."

"Consumers and commercial fleets are increasingly embracing electrification and with the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) now favouring EVs, vehicle owners of all shapes and sizes are now ready to begin their transition, albeit at a slower pace during the first half of the year," he adds.

In 2022, we all had to get used to expecting the unexpected. We can expect more of the same in 2023.

On that note, we'd like to wish all of our readers a very happy festive season and a prosperous new year.