DKV Mobility eMobility Study: European companies want more electric vehicles – but face rising costs

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Survey of more than 1,700 fleet managers across eight countries
More than half of companies plan to purchase additional fully electric vehicles within the next two years
Rising costs, energy prices and charging infrastructure seen as key challenges
Nine out of ten companies with electric vehicles already operate their own onsite charging facilities

The electrification of corporate fleets across Europe is gaining momentum. More than half of companies intend to add additional fully electric vehicles over the next two years. At the same time, fleet managers are dealing with significant challenges – especially rising costs, increasing sustainability requirements and a public charging network that many still consider insufficient. These are the findings of the latest DKV Mobility E‑Mobility Study, based on a survey of 1,732 fleet and mobility managers in Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, the Czech Republic and Romania.

“Our report clearly shows that electrification in European companies is accelerating. At the same time, it becomes evident that transforming corporate fleets remains a complex strategic task for many businesses,” says Sven Mehringer, Managing Director at DKV Mobility and responsible for Energy & Vehicle Services.

Despite the ongoing shift toward electric mobility, traditional powertrains continue to dominate European corporate fleets. Diesel remains the most common fuel type, followed by petrol. However, electrified powertrains – such as battery‑electric vehicles and plug‑in hybrids – are steadily gaining ground. This shift is particularly visible in countries like the Netherlands, which already have an above‑average share of fully electric vehicles in corporate fleets.

Germany, too, sits around the European mid‑range, with a slightly higher share of fully electric vehicles. When it comes to workplace charging, however, Germany stands out: companies there are more likely than average to operate their own wall boxes at company sites. At the same time, many fleet managers continue to view the public fast‑charging network as insufficient.

In Germany, the economic dimension plays an especially prominent role in fleet electrification. Many companies cite rising energy prices and high purchase costs for electric vehicles as major factors influencing the pace of adoption. At the same time, German companies are more likely than their European peers to plan investments in their own charging infrastructure in order to make the operation of electric fleets more predictable in the long term.

A look across Europe shows considerable differences in the speed of electrification. While countries like the Netherlands already have a substantial share of fully electric vehicles in corporate fleets, businesses in several Central and Eastern European countries continue to rely more heavily on traditional powertrains and hybrid transition solutions.

The study highlights that the transformation of corporate mobility is shaped by several structural factors. Three themes stand out as the biggest challenges for fleet management: rising cost pressure, increasing sustainability requirements, and the electrification of fleets. Larger companies and the transport sector in particular feel these pressures most strongly.

At the same time, many companies are planning significant changes to their fleet structures in the coming years. Around 56 percent of surveyed companies intend to purchase more fully electric vehicles, while only a small proportion expect a decline. Plug‑in hybrids also remain an important part of many companies’ fleet strategies. Traditional combustion engines, by contrast, are expected to play a diminishing role over time.

Companies identify three main barriers to further electrification: high purchase costs, rising electricity prices, and the perceived limited range of electric vehicles. Many respondents also point to a still insufficiently developed public charging infrastructure.

“Many companies have clearly committed to electrifying their fleets. The decisive factor now will be whether key framework conditions, such as costs, energy prices and infrastructure can keep pace with this momentum,” says Mehringer.

At the same time, many companies are investing in their own charging solutions. Today, around nine out of ten companies with electric vehicles already operate charging infrastructure on their premises. A clear majority also plans to further expand this infrastructure over the next two years.

For the study, the market research institute Innofact AG conducted 1,732 standardized online interviews with fleet managers in eight European countries in November 2025.

The full study is available here.

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