A major player in Europe’s energy transition, TSG Group specialises in the supplying, installing and maintaining of equipment and systems that provide energy to different means of mobility. Committed to the shift towards electric vehicles, the company has developed its offering to include the supply, installation and maintenance of a range of equipment for charging electric vehicles, including, of course, charging points.
A multi-energy approach
This transition to electric vehicles is, however, not a synonym of the total and definitive abandonment of internal combustion engines. As its Chairman and CEO Jean-Marc Bianchi told us, TSG Group is fully committed to the energy transition of its B2B customers through a “multi-energy approach”. To this end, the company has developed a number of partnerships – notably with manufacturers of charging points – to offer customers the best possible support in their transition to zero-emission vehicles. Internally, it has also enabled its employees to adapt to these changes
“We’ve gone from 80 to 1,500 employees trained and qualified to install electric terminals. Many technicians have been recruited, while others have received training to qualify them to work on these terminals”, explains Jean-Marc Bianchi.
Are companies lagging behind?
Although the Loi d’Orientation des Mobilités (LOM) encourages companies to make their fleets greener, 60% of them have not yet embraced electric vehicles. They are often afraid of the cost of ‘clean’ vehicles, the reliability of electric motors, or the use of charging points, where breakdowns and the impossibility of paying by credit card scare off many. With this in mind, TSG is adapting to the AFIR regulations (which make it compulsory to pay by card at most charging stations) by installing a payment terminal directly on the charging station or a Totem to manage several of them.
A gradual transition
While assuring us that “environmental management and safety are TSG’s top priorities”, Jean-Marc Bianchi is fairly confident about the progress of the energy transition in France in the years to come. “A country like Norway is eight years ahead of us in its energy transition. Today, 90% of new vehicles sold there are electric. In France, we are in the process of following this path”, he compares, before reminding us that we will still have to reckon with the presence of combustion-powered vehicles in the French car fleet even in several years’ time. “The transition to electric vehicles will be gradual. In Europe by 2030, electric vehicles should only represent around 30% of the car fleet. This means that 70% of vehicles will still be combustion-powered, so we’ll need companies that supply, install and maintain petrol pumps. TSG’s aim is to support this energy transition with multi-energy skills,” he concluded.
Published on 24 April 2024 on Auto Infos, by Anthony Mota. Picture by Traxall.
