EV fans deplete Dutch gov’s €10M electric vehicle grant in just 8 days

In just eight days, the Dutch have managed to use up €10 million ($11.3M USD) worth of subsidies to support the purchase of new electric vehicles, Dutch outlet NOS reported earlier today.

In the Netherlands, buyers of new electric vehicles can register to receive a €4,000 ($4,400 USD) subsidy to put towards the purchase of the vehicle. But now, all those that register for the free money will have to wait until next year, when the next budget is announced.

The subsidy was announced back in February but came into effect on July 1.

While it took eight days for the whole budget to be used up, 44% of it had been requested by noon on the first day the subsidy was available.

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Due to coronavirus, car sales have slowed and sellers have dropped their prices to encourage new buyers to take the plunge and ditch their combustion vehicle for an electric one.

“Various parties in the market reinforce this movement by temporarily lowering prices, which means that the budget has been exhausted faster than expected,” Minister for the Environment and Housing, Stientje van Veldhoven, said in a translated statement.

There’s still plenty of subsidies left for used electric vehicles, though. According to Dutch News €1.4 million ($1.6M USD) of the €7.2 million ($8.2M USD) budget for secondhand EVs has been claimed. When buying a used EV Dutch citizens can receive up to €2,000 ($2,300 USD) towards its cost.

Earlier this week, Dutch News reported that the Netherlands is going to invest €30 million ($34M USD) to develop EV charging structure over the next few years. It better get a move on if it’s going to keep up with public interest in EVs.