In the current context of transition towards sustainable mobility, the recent launch of the social leasing program for electric cars in France, strongly supported by the president Emmanuel Macron, is facing significant challenges. The initiative, which aims to make electric cars more accessible to low-income families, has run into an unexpected but obvious problem. Which? An extraordinarily high demand.
More: well beyond the manufacturers' production capabilities and budget forecasts. And this raises urgent questions about the viability of the program and the future of electric mobility in France (and elsewhere, as we will see).
The success and limits of Macron's social leasing
The proposal Macron's social leasing scheme, launched with the opening of the online registration platform on 14 December, aimed to enable less well-off families to use an electric car at a controlled cost of 100 euros per month. However, the reality proved more complex. The number of requests quickly exceeded the one million mark, revealing its structural limitations, mainly limited production capacity and the availability of public funds.
Car manufacturers, such as Citroën, Fiat, Opel, Peugeot and Renault, have not been able to satisfy the growing demand for low-cost cars. This highlights a critical problem not only in France: the production capacity of the automotive industry is not keeping up with the enormous demand stimulated by the initiative. Furthermore, the public funds allocated to the program are insufficient compared to the high number of applications, raising doubts about the financial sustainability of the project.
Social leasing, the French government's response. And the Italian one?
Faced with this situation, the French government is forced to review its strategies. Agnes Pannier-Runacher, Minister of Energy Transition, revealed that a screening of the applications will be necessary. It is likely that priority will be given to those who use the car for work reasons, trying to balance demand with available resources.
As France faces these challenges, Italy is watching with interest, preparing to launch its own ecobonus program which provides incentives similar to social leasing across the Alps. The comparison between the two countries will become crucial to better understand the dynamics of adoption of electric cars in Europe and to resolve the dilemma: is the limited diffusion of electric cars in Italy due to their cost or to cultural prejudices?
Macron's social leasing has proven to be a crucial experiment in the transition to electric mobility. The program is experiencing significant difficulties, but has also demonstrated the high demand and interest in electric cars, underlining the importance of adequate planning and strategies. The success of this project could represent a significant step towards a more sustainable future, but only if current challenges are overcome with innovative and workable solutions.
