Government Push for Electric Buses Driving Italian Electric Bus Charging Station Market

In 2018, the Italian electric bus charging station market generated a revenue of $12.3 million and is projected to reach $44.8 million in 2025, registering a 20.3% CAGR during the forecast period (2019–2025). The market is growing due to the rising deployment of electric buses in public fleet and government support for electric buses. Electric bus charging stations are also known as electric vehicle supply equipment, charge points, and electric recharging points and are utilized to charge the batteries of electric buses.

In terms of type, the Italian electric bus charging station market is bifurcated into opportunity charger and overnight charger. The market was dominated by the overnight charger category during the historical period (2017–2018), holding a volume share of more than 65.0% in 2018. This was due to the rising preference of private and public agencies for overnight charging buses, as their operational characteristics are similar to those of diesel buses. This category is further going to account for the major volume share of the market during the forecast period.   

On the basis of power, the electric bus charging station market is divided into <22 kW, 22–50 kW, 51–150 kW, and >150 kW. In 2018, the 22–50 kW division held the largest volume share of the market. This was due to the fact that several electric bus manufacturers are launching DC fast charging buses, which facilitate fast charging in less time and in a cost-efficient manner. The fastest growth is predicted to be witnessed by the 51–150 kW division during the forecast period.

A key driving factor of the Italy electric bus charging station market is the increasing support by the government for the adoption of electric buses. For example, the Italian government has kept aside an amount of $4,371.55 million for the time period of 2019–2033 for shifting to electric and other new-energy-fueled buses in sub-urban and urban areas. Because of such initiatives, the traditional buses in the urban areas are projected to be replaced by electric buses. Major cities such as Milan, Cagliari, and Turin are changing their public transport rapidly.

The introduction of fast-charging stations is creating wide opportunities in the Italian e-bus charging station market. Various regions in the country are focusing on reducing their carbon emissions, due to which cities and municipalities are increasingly becoming inclined toward clean transportation, such as electric buses. This growing interest in electric buses in the country has led the public-owned utilities and private companies to increase their focus on installing fast-charging infrastructure. Attributed to this, battery electric buses will be able to offer uninterrupted service without carrying large batteries.

A key trend in the electric bus charging station market is the increasing preference for opportunity charging buses. The reason for this is the advantages provided by such buses over depot charging system-based buses. Overnight charging is required in depot charging buses, due to which their battery is larger. The large battery increases the weight of the buses and requires significant space in the bus. In addition to this, range of the bus is affected as well. Because of these factors, the preference for opportunity charging system-based buses is on the rise in the country.

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Thus, the market is growing considerably due to the rising support by the country’s government for increasing the adoption of electric buses.