Following a first event in 20091 a second Workshop on Research for the Fully Electric Vehicle has been organized on June 11, 2010 in Brussels. This second workshop had two specific objectives :

• A clustering and concertation meeting bringing together European funded projects on ICT for the Fully Electric Vehicle. The first call for proposals in the framework of the European Green Cars Initiative2 (Call Identifier FP7-2010-ICT-GC) with deadline on 3.11.2009 addressing the area of ICT for the Fully Electric Vehicle resulted in the selection of seven new projects that are being launched in 2010. Additionally, several other projects addressing the same theme have been launched through the Joint Technology Initiatives ENIAC3 and ARTEMIS4 previously. The main objectives of the meeting were to create complementarities of the different EU funded projects’ activities for the Electric Vehicle, to identify potential synergies and relevant topics for further
cooperation and thus to improve the performance of the individual EU funded projects.

• A presentation by national funding agencies and ministries of various Member States about the ICT related research programmes and projects at the national level on the topic of Electric Vehicles. The intention was to offer an opportunity to synchronise efforts in view of a common goal, i.e. the international competitiveness of the European automotive sector. Key issues such as regulation and standardisation needs for a common European infrastructure of the need for public incentives were part of these discussions.

Both objectives have been covered in two main sessions during the workshop, the first one in the morning and the second in the afternoon. As a bridge between the two main sessions two dedicated presentations were given by Josef Affenzeller of AVL/ERTRAC :

• Standardisation : A challenge for the Full Electric Vehicle – Plug-in as well as FEV

• Overview of worldwide automotive electrification plans The workshop was opened with a presentation by Thierry Van der Pyl, Director Components and Systems with DG Information Society and Media, European Commission. In his opening statement he presented the global challenges for a new electro-mobility approach in Europe, driven by issues such as the global recession, sustainable transport, competitiveness and economic and social benefits, as smart, sustainable and inclusive growth is needed for creating more jobs in Europe. He continued with a SWOT analysis for the Electric Vehicle in Europe, which has a strong automotive industry. Different EU programmes are focussing on the Fully Electric Vehicle such as the European Green Cars Initiative PPP and the ENIAC and ARTEMIS Joint Undertakings. More focus will be required in the future because the available money is thinly spread for the large amount of topics covered by these EU programmes. The question will be to find out how to articulate these different programmes in order to become more efficient. The European Green Cars Initiative is part of the European Economic Recovery Plan, defined in 2008 in order to stimulate demand, boost consumer confidence and above all to maintain jobs. It is an ad-hoc action to reinforce the European competitiveness and to speed up the shift towards a low carbon economy. Mr. Van der Pyl covered in detail the recent European Commission’s Communication on Clean and Energy Efficient Vehicles, the European Parliament Resolution on Electric Cars and the Competitiveness Council Conclusions on clean and energyefficient vehicles for a competitive automotive industry and decarbonised road transport. Hence, a strong political support is present in Europe for a new mobility approach based on Fully Electric Vehicles. Future research programmes such as FP8 will be roadmap driven and will require the involvement of all relevant stakeholders such as the automotive industry and the different Member States. A more open approach towards SMEs would also be pursued.

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