Citroën electrifies the Greek island of Halki
Oh, Island in the Sun!
VW has started the transformation to a smart, sustainable island on Astypalea
© press-inform – the press office
Electrifying islands is currently very much in vogue among automobile manufacturers. Citroën takes on Chalki in the southern Aegean.
The island of Chalki looks like a Greek postcard idyll. White houses, narrow streets, narrow stone stairs and in the background the sun is reflected in the azure blue Aegean Sea. The Iceland has an area of almost 30 square kilometers and is located in the southern Aegean Sea, not far from Rhodes. Already in ancient times 8,000 people lived, cultivated wheat and extracted copper. This explains the name. Chalki means nothing else than copper. Today tourism is the number one source of income when summer visitors translate from nearby Rhodes.
Reason enough for Citroën to set an example with Chalki and transform the island into an area of sustainable, emission-free mobility. In order to create this ecological microcosm, the car manufacturer, through the Greek importer Syngelidis, is pulling together with the French construction and infrastructure group Vinci and the energy company Akuo Greece. Because it is of course not enough to deliver a few Stromers by ship and then send the residents off with the best of wishes.
On Chalki, too, the infrastructure is the decisive factor for the success of electromobility. A sufficient charging structure is just as important as proper maintenance of electromobility. This is easier to implement with an area of 30 square kilometers than with hundreds of kilometers of motorway. Especially since there is an abundance of sun and wind. “This project will change the lives of a few people, but it’s just the beginning. By helping Halki become a” green “, zero-emission environment, Citroën is paving the way for a more sustainable future and showing that the Electrification is an important factor, “explains Citroën boss Vincent Cobée.
The French car maker is bringing its e-vehicle fleet to the island. Unlike on the mainland in Italy, where police officers hunt criminals in a Lamborghini Gallardo, the law enforcement officers of the police and the coast guard sit in a Citroën Ami. Not necessarily overpowered, but the stern eyes of the executive can get anywhere without getting wet and, in case of doubt, can also block the narrow streets and thus block the escape route for the bad guys. The community receives models of the duo ë-C4 and ë-SpaceTourer and the local energy community receives the ë-Jumpy. So that the cycle is also closed with the vehicles, Citroën grants free leasing for four years, then buys the vehicles back, only to then donate them again to the municipality of Chalki
However, the idea of transforming an island or a limited area into a green model region is not entirely new. VW recently started electrifying Astypalea in the same area and made its e-fleet available. Here, too, the police started with an ID.4. The French competitor Renault has also launched similar projects. On the Portuguese island of Porto Santo, the French installed an intelligent power grid with the energy supplier Empresa Electricidade da Madeira (EEM) and the Munich energy service provider The Mobility House with the aim of making fossil fuels obsolete. Similar projects are already underway on the French island of Belle-Île-en-Mer and Fernando de Noronha in Brazil.