The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced on 12 October that it had awarded Groupe Bolloré €75m (US$97m) to fund the expansion of the Autolib’ Paris EV car club scheme which it manages and for which the group supplies the vehicles and their batteries.
On 10 January 2011, the EIB lent the Groupe Bolloré €130m for R&D in energy storage.
The new EIB loan will finance investments in the establishment of infrastructure linking the Autolib’ charging points and parking bays, and R&D related to automated member subscription, billing, EV recharging and ICT systems enabling real-time management of Autolib’s customers and fleet.
The EIB said the loan coincided with the growth of the diversified, €8bn-plus turnover Groupe Bolloré in energy storage technology and its applications, and noted that the Groupe Bolloré, within the Autolib’ project, had put 1,750 Bluecar EVs on Paris’ roads, available from 710 locations, and that the Autolib’ scheme had so far attracted 38,800 subscribers, including 13,600 holding premium annual subscriptions. This week Bolloré also launched a Bluecar leasing programme for individuals and fleets in the Ile-de-France region, linked optionally to solar power installations.
The EIB loan came from a fund approved within a European Energy Economy investment strategy aimed at supporting EV and green transport infrastructure investments within the EU.
Launching the Bluecar leasing programme, Vincent Bolloré recently suggested the Autolib’ operation might achieve break-even by 2014, having earlier expected it to achieve profitability after five years.
