Many advances have been made in Costa Rica towards the goal of a more sustainable country, with renewable energy and demand for electric vehicles.
Last year 2022, the Central American country reached the highest market share in the Americas for the electric car segment.
One of the masterminds behind the big actions is the Costa Rican Electricity Institute, better known as ICE Group (its acronym), which is chaired by Marco Acuña.
When talking exclusively with Acuña, he referred to the fact that everything has remained focused on the active route for more than 70 years, in the sense of where we want to go, which is the point of view of electricity generation and clean energy.
For Acuña, more than 99% of annual electricity generation is through renewable generation or renewable sources. “We are working on the incorporation of technologies that allow us to take more advantage of renewable energy, such as energy storage and also aspects related to the use of that energy so that when demand is a little low, have other uses such as decarbonization of industrial processes or electromobility,” he said.
In recent days, it was learned through the company Red Motors, that BMW and MINI electric vehicles will be delivered with the ICE’s Es Eléctrico! card, another alliance of the Institute so that customers can make greater use of chargers throughout the country without the need for additional procedures.
Red Motors is the first vehicle distributor in the country to offer this service, focused on promoting clean energy, and renewable generation, increasing the traffic of electric cars, and through them further expanding the charging network throughout the country, all this as a major purpose of ICE.
We are on the road to sustainable mobility in Costa Rica in which Costa Rican citizens can drive without worries.
In the fast charging network “Es Eléctrico”, after subscribing to the platform, Ticos can self-manage the charging of their vehicle, in the network of 38 fast chargers that are available in the concession area of ICE’s power grid. They must also activate the GPS on their cell phone so that they can locate on the map the distance between where they are at the moment and where the nearest chargers are.
Each driver can additionally block their Es eléctrico! card in case of loss and request a new or additional card.
Strengthening the electromobility market
ICE Group has made other contributions to promote a more sustainable transportation model in the country.
Among these efforts, we would like to emphasize the Interinstitutional Cooperation Agreement signed with Banco de Costa Rica, which seeks to promote business models based on renewable electrification, with a priority on reducing polluting gases and encouraging the energy transition in different sectors, including transportation.
It is all part of a corporate plan that includes strategic investment: ICE has allocated approximately $2 million for the implementation of electric chargers.
The plan also includes infrastructure works, both ICE and Compañía Nacional de Fuerza y Luz are pioneers in the implementation of fast chargers, forming a network that is aligned with the mobility demands projected by the national legislation.
They are increasingly working on freight facilitation and leadership for electrifying public transportation, which has been progressing since last year.
According to ICE Group, represented by Marco Acuña, progress in the electrification of transport depends on the conditions and legislation in force.
In 2022, the purchase of electric vehicles increased by 7%, with 24 brands and 45 electric models available, which evidences the dynamization of the market.
Other encouraging figures on electric mobility
According to the Ministry of Environment and Energy of Costa Rica, more than 1,800 electric vehicles were registered last year before the Property Registry, which meant an increase of more than 40% compared to 2021.
Finally, the National Energy Control Center also reported that the year 2022 reached 99% of clean energy production, how will 2023 close? We do not know, what we do know is how evident has been the commitment between institutions and consumers to achieve the goals in the country. Bravo!.
