By Jan Vangansbeke, HSE & Facility Manager and Ben Verbeeck, Marketing Coordinator at JBT Belgium.
Moving away from petrol-fueled cars towards electric vehicles (EVs) has become increasingly important in recent years due to the growing concern over climate change and the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Many governments and cities around the world are offering incentives and subsidies to encourage the adoption of EVs, making them a more attractive option compared to petrol-fueled cars.
Why go Electric?
JBT is committed to sustainability and reducing emissions. We have already taken plenty of initiatives to contribute towards our goals, such as improving our energy efficiency, reduce waste, have a larger share of our power consumption from renewable energy and of course also encouraging our employees embrace sustainable behavior.
By using electric vehicles, JBT can reduce its carbon footprint and contribute to the fight against climate change. Studies have shown that emissions from electric vehicles across their entire operating lives are up to 65% less than from petrol cars in Belgium.
In addition there are plenty of government incentives in place in Belgium to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles as well as the installation of electric charging points. One of the incentives is the federal tax credit for the purchase of an electric car. This can help reduce the cost of purchasing an electric vehicle and can make EVs a more attractive option for employees.
Another incentive is the exemption of road tax and company car tax for electric vehicles. Starting in 2026, there will be no tax relief provided for cars that emit CO2.
The Belgian government has also implemented a low-emission zone in several cities. Only low-emission vehicles, such as electric cars, are allowed to enter these zones. Finally, the Belgian government also offers businesses a tax credit and an accelerated depreciation rate for electric charging infrastructure.
Installation of Charging Stations at JBT Belgium, Sint Niklaas
At JBT Sint Niklaas, we have approximately 60 company vehicles, so it was time to be proactive and prepare ourselves for the future and make the change from fuel driven cars to EVs.
That is why we have implemented a two-phase plan. In the first phase, we have installed a double charging point at our visitors’ parking lot and five single charging points at our employee parking lot. The charging stations for our employees are complete with charging cables, while visitors will have to bring their own charging cables. In a second phase we can extend this by installing four more double charging points at the visitor’s parking lot and 15 more charging points at our employee parking lot. A software monitoring system is managing all data for the charging stations.
Leading the Change for Sustainability
By having electric charging points at our company, we encourage our employees to switch to EVs and demonstrate JBT’s commitment to sustainability whilst also using available incentives to reduce the cost for both our company and our employees.