Features
16 Sep 21

ALD Automotive is the exclusive online lease partner of Smart

Car leasing and business mobility specialist ALD Automotive announced a strategic partnership with car brand Smart, where ALD will be the exclusive digital full-service lease provider for the car brand's new generation of electric vehicles.

Starting with Smart’s new premium compact SUV from Q1 2023, corporates, small to medium sized companies and private individuals will have access to a fully integrated digital leasing offering from ALD Automotive in Europe.

ALD Automotive’s full-service leasing packages will be available with flexible durations and mileage directly on the website of Smart and via the the Smart local network. The service will first be provided in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. ALD Automotive is planning to extend the service in other European countries in the future.

ALD Automotive had also announced a strategic partnership with EV brand Tesla last week, adding a strong brand into its OEM EV partnerships, that already cover Ford, Polestar and Lynk & Co. To further facilitate the seamless uptake and integration of fleet electrification, ALD Automotive is partnering with ChargePoint to provide charging infrastructure hardware and software solutions on an international scale.

ALD Automotive comes with holistic Electric Offer in 23 countries

Owning over 1,8 million fleet cars in Europe, ALD Automotive also revealed its goals for achieving fleet electrification in Europe, as well as reducing carbon emissions.

CCO Annie Pin (pictured) stated that the corporate fleet market became the most extensive channel of new cars in Europe as commercial sales represented 37% of car sales in the continent. 

To meet their commitment to CO2 reduction, ALD Automotive expects 30% of new registrations to be EVs by 2025 and 50% pure BEVs by 2030. Reaching this goal will reduce CO2 emissions by 40% for all new contracts by 2025. 

According to Pin, ALD has today a 26% share of EV (BEV and PHEV) passenger cars in Europe and 23% globally. Pin said these figures underline the strong commitment to CO2 reduction, and to further accelerate the fleet electrification journey ALD is going to offer a holistic approach with services covering the complete electric vehicle value chain, including consultancy, driver profiling, vehicle selection, funding, and seamles  charging with the ALD Electric Offer. This ALD Electric Offer will become available in 23 countries by Q4 of this year.

Annie Pin said that ALD sees opportunities not just for companies but for the entire fleet industry, and they have the power to boost electrification by enabling corporate fleets for corporations. 

EVs are not a niche anymore

Head of CSR at ALD Automotive, Stéphane Renie (pictured) emphasized the rise of EVs in the European fleet market and explained their plans to reduce carbon emissions under the European Commission "Fit for 55" plan. 

Renie said EVs are not a niche anymore as sales of EVs have multiplied by 4,5 in the last two years and reached 13,6% in 2021 in Europe. Reine stated 70% of EV sales in Europe are in Germany, Norway, the UK, France and Sweden, which hold 85% of the charging structure. And the EV penetration of ALD in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Germany is today above 20%. 

Underlining that passenger cars and LCVs represent 15% of total CO2 emission in the EU, Renie said the fleet divisions of ALD’s customers can represent up to 50% of the customers' internal emissions. 

With non-stopping technological progress, strategy shift of manufacturers towards EVs and most critically, demands arising from customers and regulations, Renie says barriers around electrification will diminish in the coming years.

New battery technologies will increase the range of EVs, investments and collaborations will improve charging infrastructures and innovations will eventually reduce the total cost of ownership. 

Image courtesy of smart.

Photos of Annie Pin, COO of ALD Automotive and Stéphane Renie, Head of CSR at ALD Automotive, courtesy of ALD Automotive.

Authored by: Mufit Yilmaz Gokmen