EGEB: How Denmark will go from 20k to 1m electric cars by 2030

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• The Danish parliament approved a plan for at least 1 million electric or hybrid cars on Danish roads by 2030.
• Boise, Idaho, will now require all new homes to provide a circuit for electric car charging.
• IRENA urges governments to prioritize renewable energy on the fifth anniversary of the Paris Agreement.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Denmark’s electric car plan

Denmark’s parliament on Friday agreed to secure financing — $407.6 million — for at least 775,000 electric cars in Denmark by 2030 (that includes hybrids). The broader plan is to have up to 1 million electric and hybrid cars on the road in Denmark by the same year. That is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 2 million tons.

Denmark intends to achieve that electric car goal by increasing taxes and levies on fossil-fuel cars, depending on how much CO2 they emit. That will replace a mileage-based system.

Tax Minister Morten Boedskov said [via Reuters]:

The average electric car will be significantly cheaper in the coming years.

The Scandinavian country currently has around 20,000 electric cars out of a total of around 2.5 million cars.

The country is one of 11 EU countries that ultimately want to eliminate ICE cars by 2030 across the EU, and Denmark has an ambitious target to reduce emissions overall by 70% by 2030.

Boise’s EV charging push

Last week, Boise, Idaho’s City Council approved a new building code that will require every new single-family home or townhouse with garages to include a higher voltage circuit. That way, the homeowner will be able to easily install a home charging station for an electric vehicle.

According to Boisedev.com:

This is part of Boise’s goal to have all homes, businesses, and other buildings 100% powered by renewable energy by 2035 approved in 2019. The city also has a goal for all city buildings to be renewably powered by 2030. Earlier this year, Boise’s Public Works Department created a new division focused on addressing climate change.

Two-fifths of Idaho’s population live in Boise. On a state level, according to the US Energy Information Administration, more than two-thirds of the energy Idaho consumes comes from out of state. Idaho typically generates more than three-fourths of its in-state electricity from renewable energy, primarily from hydroelectric sources, and wind potential is growing. Idaho has some of the best geothermal potential in the US due to hot springs and other geothermal sources.

Renewables at the heart of Paris

The Paris Agreement was adopted by consensus in December 2015. So on its fifth anniversary, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Coalition for Action is urging governments to step up their efforts toward a green recovery. IRENA calls on countries to put a renewables-based energy transition at the heart of an economic recovery from COVID-19. Check out their pithy yet pointed one-minute video below. It can’t be said enough, and IRENA’s complete six-point call to action can be read here.

Photo: Teknikens Varld

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