Alphabet grows plug-in fleet with one-in-three vehicles now electrified

Electrified vehicles accounted for 31% of total new business at Alphabet in 2022 – some 53,000 units – with one-in-three vehicles on its fleet now either partially or fully electric.

Alphabet’s total portfolio remained stable at 700,000 vehicles thanks to an annual order volume of 200,000-plus units.

Markus Deusing, CEO of Alphabet International, said: “We exceeded our ambition of increasing the electrified vehicle share of new business by 31% last year.

“We will continue our mission of raising awareness and demand for sustainable, greener fleet options and helping our customers make positive progress towards their ESG targets.”

Last year, the company furthered its global market expansion by launching services to customers in Canada and Finland, bringing the total number of countries Alphabet is present in to 33.

While it acknowledges a challenging landscape, Alphabet says that it has not lost sight of its key objectives of keeping customers mobile at all times and providing reliable, flexible, tailored solutions.

The past few years have demonstrated the importance of flexible mobility solutions, it says, explaining that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach for developing the right business travel strategy.

Organisations, it added, are increasingly looking for mobility that provides the agility they need to navigate uncertainty.

Ordering behaviour has been hit, with fewer new vehicles available and organisations forced to review strategies in the face of a challenging global economic backdrop.

As a result, Alphabet says that interest in flexible solutions increased significantly, resulting in the expansion of its rental business with more than 22,000 vehicles joining the fleet.

Alphabet experienced consistent order volumes over the course of 2022 and the company is more than optimistic about the road ahead.

"We continue to see strong demand,” said Deusing. "Our order books are full and more vehicles are expected to become available again this year as supply challenges improve. We expect 2023 to be another year of solid growth, particularly for fully electric vehicles."

Alphabet says it is committed to helping customers work towards their sustainability goals. Monitoring its own CO₂ emissions and sharing first-hand insight, expertise, and learnings from internal measures is just one of the ways the company is using consultancy to support customers with their electrification and sustainability journeys. 

The future of fleets will be determined by digital solutions that enable organisations to reduce CO₂ emissions and make mobility easier and more convenient, it added.

Digitalisation is a key priority for Alphabet and the business is focused on delivering significant investment across all digital services in 2023.