An even bigger challenge is that petrol stations are already facing intense competition from other public EV chargers. Data collected by the Ministry of Energy shows that among the public charging stations that the agency tracks entirely, there are currently more public chargers in hotels and hostels, shopping malls and government buildings than in gas stations and convenience stores. This is a limited picture of the country`s charging network, and it doesn`t include the large number of chargers built by private companies like Blink, Electrify America, and Chargepoint. These companies also seem to prefer to install these chargers in places with grid-connected parking lots, where ev drivers can find something to do while charging, such as a grocery store or restaurant. Get the 5-minute summary of weekday hustle and bustle that will keep you up to date on what`s happening in technology, business, and the internet. Things. Concerns about climate change have led the governments of California, Canada and the EU to order an end to the sale of new gasoline cars by 2035, while other places are going even further, introducing sales bans as early as 2030 or even 2025. Automakers like GM, Mazda, Volvo and others are seeing the writing on the wall and following suit by setting dates for their last gasoline-powered vehicles for sale. Not only that, but even before electric vehicles became a factor, the impact of U.S. energy efficiency standards introduced in 1978 means that gasoline demand today is 14% lower than it would have been if no standard had been adopted. The rise of electric vehicles is just the latest nail in the coffin, as « […] Electric cars will plunge the gas station industry into a death spiral over the next two decades […] » writes Justin Rowlatt, the BBC`s chief environmental correspondent. The UK has already committed to banning the sale of new internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles by 2030, with many other countries setting similar targets with implementation dates between 2025 and 2040. At the same time, a third of new cars are expected to be electric or partially electric by 2030, according to BCG.
Nevertheless, gas stations have been in decline for several decades. Gas stations currently act as intermediaries between the fossil fuel industry and drivers. Oil companies need a place where they can easily distribute their products to customers, and drivers need a convenient and reliable place to fill their gas tanks. And again, gas stations aren`t just in business, gasoline and diesel for sale. They also make money by selling food, alcohol, cigarettes, and lottery tickets, among other things. Some gas stations offer mechanical services; Some have restaurants in them. In 2021, Petaluma in California became the first city in the world to ban new gas stations. Since then, at least four other cities have permanently banned new gas stations, and at least six others (including Los Angeles, the city of cars!) are currently developing guidelines. Just like in 2019, when Berkeley unleashed a wave of cities adopting a policy of electrification of construction, the movement to stop new gas stations has arrived – and local elected officials around the world would be wise to take note of it. And even if they haven`t, local competition is keeping them in check: the best places – highway exits and busy alleys – are often filled with groups of resorts fighting for business. This is the bad news.
The good news is that most local governments can stop the spread of this problem by banning new gas stations with relatively simple updates to their zone code (as many officials already do). One indication of how this policy area is gaining momentum is that since March of this year, guidelines on banning gas stations have been adopted in Rohnert Park and Sevastopol, California, and policies are currently being developed in at least six other locations in the United States and Canada. Gas stations are polluting the environment and are extremely expensive to renovate. Electric cars are making gas stations obsolete Gas stations aren`t really excited about the government`s efforts to deploy electric vehicle chargers anywhere, everywhere. In Georgia, where several automakers plan to build new manufacturing facilities focused on electric vehicles, commercial groups of gas stations are pushing for legislation that would limit the potential role of the state energy agency in charging electric vehicles. At the national level, lobby groups representing the gas station and convenience store industries resisted a congressional proposal to build electric vehicle chargers at public service stations on the highway because it would hurt the competitiveness of gas stations. Take the case of the first gas station in the United States to switch to full electricity. The station in question is located in Takoma Park, Maryland, and has been in operation since 1958. In 2019, the owner of the resort decided to drive fully electric. This shift to electric mobility could not have happened without a $786,000 grant from the Maryland Energy Administration and the Electric Vehicle Institute. Without public funding, all but the largest and best placed petrol stations will not be able to switch to electricity solely because of market forces.
43% of today`s gas stations will disappear by 2050 and the rest must stand out by focusing on 4 key principles. Gas stations usually receive only a fraction of the price shown on the sign. And after taking into account the overhead costs – labor, utilities, insurance, credit card transaction fees – the average profit is reduced to ~$0.03 to $0.07 per gallon. So if these companies want to survive, they need to start reinventing themselves for a world beyond gas. This could be difficult, if not impossible. Installing electric vehicle chargers at existing gas stations can be quite expensive. In the meantime, these locations could become irrelevant as automakers, charging station companies and the government compete to build a brand new network of electric vehicle chargers. Convenience stores also have some of the highest crime rates of any business in America, with average annual theft losses exceeding $761 per location. In contrast, the coin-operated air machines you`ll find at most stations can make a profit of $300 to $500 a month, even after paying the businesses they rent. But when all else fails, gas stations always have a secret financial weapon in their pockets: these fascinating rotating hot dog machines. To adapt this business model to the era of electric vehicles, some gas stations are now installing Level 3 chargers that can offer up to 20 miles of range per minute in addition to their older pumps and convenience stores. Some of these fast chargers make charging electric vehicles almost as fast as filling an old-fashioned gas tank, and they`re much faster than what people usually use at home.
