Is the explosion in sales of ethanol conversion kits in the first quarter of 2022 a national phenomenon or is it influenced by the aid granted in certain regions? This is what L’argus invites you to discover exclusively thanks to NGC-Data® statistics.
It is well known, the misfortune of some always makes the happiness of others. Soaring fuel prices thus had a stimulating effect on sales of ethanol canisters. Our partner NGC-Data® identified no less than 9,220 conversions of gray cards following a switch to E85 in the first quarter of 2022, corresponding to as many installations of approved conversion kits. This is almost 3.5 times more than the same period in 2021! But the statistics provided also show that this increase did not affect all of France in the same way. While it reaches 784% in the Grand Est, the increase is indeed limited to 226% in Occitania. Result: while this last region had installed more units than all the others in the first three months of 2021, it falls on the third step of the podium in 2022. It is now the Grand Est which is well ahead in representing close to one in five installations.
TO READ. E85 ethanol cans: The real figures by brand and model
Figures boosted by regional aid
These figures are not just the result of chance. It was also in the Grand Est that the “€1 box” operation had been launched, now replaced by a grant of €550 aimed at partially financing the installation and supply of 5,000 homologated conversion kits. Hauts-de-France, which finished in second place, also grants aid, up to 40% of the cost of transforming the vehicle with a ceiling of €400. It is therefore clear that this type of incentive mechanism has an undeniable impact. But it is not necessarily enough to explain everything. Occitania thus ends up third when it offers nothing to facilitate adaptation to E85. Here, it is more the very strong network of stations distributing this fuel that seems to interest motorists. Conversely, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur is below average despite the existence of a “bioethanol transition check”. However, the latter has seen its amount double since March 1 to reach €500, which will undoubtedly have prompted some motorists to wait. We will therefore have to wait for the figures for the second quarter to know if it has had the expected effect.
Much less enthusiastic regions
Despite its status as the most populated territory in France, Ile-de-France also remains behind with only 695 boxes installed. The launch of aid of €500 should quickly accelerate the movement, but the objective of 30,000 boxes installed by the end of 2022, set by the president of the region Valérie Pécresse, seems difficult to achieve. As in 2019 and 2020, however, it is Centre-Val de Loire, Brittany and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté which bring up the rear, despite increases of more than 300%. As for the Corsicans, in the absence of any pump distributing ethanol on the Island of Beauty, they remain totally hermetic to this fuel, even if they benefit from a 100% exemption from the gray card cost when purchasing a vehicle suitable for E85. An effective advantage, at least up to 50%, throughout mainland France… with the exception of the Grand Est region, which decided to abolish it in February 2022. History does not say whether the end of this “treatment favor “, which was also valid for hybrids or LPG, must be used to finance the subsidies granted on the other hand in the event of conversion to E85…
TO READ. Everything you need to know about E85 bioethanol: prices, models, packaging…
The regions installing the most boxes (1er quarter 2022)
| Square | Region | Number of enclosures | Change Q1 2021/2022 |
| 1 | Great East | 1,609 | +784.1% |
| 2 | Hauts-de-France | 1,103 | + 379.6% |
| 3 | Occitania | 1,033 | +225.9% |
| 4 | Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | 985 | + 264.8% |
| 5 | New Aquitaine | 879 | + 261.7% |
| 6 | Pays de la Loire | 711 | +292.8% |
| 7 | Ile-de-France | 695 | + 342.7% |
| 8 | Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur | 677 | + 310.3% |
| 9 | Normandy | 424 | + 303.8% |
| 10 | Burgundy-Franche-Comte | 422 | + 326.3% |
| 11 | Brittany | 411 | + 448% |
| 12 | Centre-Loire Valley | 270 | + 440% |
| 13 | Corsica | 1 | – |
| – | Mean | 709 | + 344.6% |
