26.06.2014 - 09:23
At a conference in Brussels on Wednesday, Barcelona presented itself as a “pioneering” city to accommodate electric vehicles. Coinciding with the European Energy Week, the Catalan delegation to the European Union in collaboration with Renault-Nissan organized a conference on the promotion of electric mobility and smart cities, entitled ‘The Liveable City’. “Everything is ready, what is missing is that people just have to make the step to use electric vehicles”, the Manager OF Infrastructure and Electric Mobility of the City of Barcelona, Manuel Valdés, told CNA. According to the Communications Director of Nissan Iberia, Francesc Corberó, the city “is not only ready, but its whole mindset is totally focused on this challenge”.
‘The Liveable City’ conference allowed participants to explore the challenges associated with sustainable mobility and discuss how to create cities ready for electric vehicles. In addition, participants were able to test-drive the Nissan electric vehicles, including taxi-van eNV200, the LEAF, the Twizy and the Zoe.
“In 2050 the population of the major cities in the world will have doubled, and this will present formidable challenges, including mobility,” said Francesc Corberó of Nissan. In his view, electric vehicles will play a vital role in this new context, which Barcelona has embraced.
“Barcelona was one of the first cities in Europe to prepare for electric mobility”, Corberó acknowledged, adding that the city “has demonstrated” its commitment to sustainable mobility and its belief that this is the project of the future.
From City Hall, Manuel Valdés declared that the Catalan capital is “pioneering” and is currently developing the installation of 10 new quick charging stations for electric vehicles in the city center and 10 more in the wider metropolitan area. “These can load a car rapidly, recharging it by 80% in 20 minutes or half an hour,” said Valdés. He anticipated that the new charging stations will be operational after the summer and will help users “get a different perspective”. “It is guaranteed that even if you have not loaded the car overnight, you will be able to do so during the day, in the center of the city,” he said.
This fast new installation will join the existing ones. “Everything is ready. What is missing is that people need to make the transition to use the new technology,” remarked the manager of Infrastructure and Electric Mobility of the City of Barcelona. According to Valdés, some drivers still regard the electric car “as a challenge because they do not understand the technology, because it is too new”. “But the advantages it has, and what it can provide, should override any reluctance,” he continued. Valdés is facilitating a public awareness campaign “because people must understand that this is really the future for the city”.
Nissan and Barcelona
In fact, Nissan is fully committed to Barcelona in the manufacturing of electric vehicles and the van eNV200 is being produced in the Zona Franca plant for worldwide distribution. “The Barcelona-Nissan relationship is excellent,” said the Director of Communications of Nissan Iberia, Francesc Corberó. “We are very clear that the road to sustainable mobility has just started and there are many stages left to run together,” he added.
According to Corberó, the Zona Franca plant has suffered “a brutal transformation since 2009” and is now “much more competitive”. “We have incorporated new technology, we are the only Renault-Nissan plant in the world that can produce the van, a 4×4 vehicle, an electric vehicle and a passenger car,” Corberó said, noting that “this flexibility is required today by international markets”. He concluded that he believes Barcelona and Nissan have the prospect of working together for a long time.
