Mihai Tanase, Dacia: “The electrification of the model range is one of our priorities”

“When the first electric cars appeared, many imagined that in 3-4-5 years there would be a moment when we would all switch to electric cars. Things are much more complicated than that, because technology is needed, infrastructure is needed, vision is needed and, above all, adaptation to the needs of clients is needed.

In Romania, but also on other European and international markets, the needs of clients are very different and the clients are very different. Purchasing power is different, governments and policies vary quite a lot in the way they approach things.

In order to reach the point where mobility is as green as possible or as electric as possible, very large investments and a long time are needed,” Mihai Tanase, Marketing Director of Dacia in Romania and Republic of Moldova said during Green Mobility Forum organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest and Automotive Today.

“The Renault group invests heavily in research and development in the area of ​​electrification and we will find the most electric models in the Renault brand. Dacia benefits from this investment and offers it to customers when it becomes accessible enough to be affordable.

We have several customer segments in the market, not only in Romania, but everywhere. That’s why Dacia is successful, because there are customer segments that are not ready today to transition to an electric car. The Spring model was the best proof of the fact that there is a segment of customers who, under certain conditions, want to take the step towards an electric model. But there are other clients who are not yet ready to make this transition. We cannot ignore the fact that the transition is expensive, sometimes frustrating and generates friction, and these frictions must also be relativized to purchasing power.

We are also looking at other solutions, because green mobility does not mean 100% electrification or 100% electric. There are alternatives that help us reduce our emissions and carbon footprint, one of them being LPG. We are one of the few markets in the region where LPG is an interesting word because the price of a liter of LPG is half that of petrol, consumption being about the same or slightly higher, but LPG emits much less CO2 than petrol.

We want to make the transition to green mobility as quickly as possible, but on the other hand we have to stay in the market to do that.

The electrification of the model range is one of our priorities, we have plans in this direction. The Romanian market has started to respond to this trend, and about 30% of the orders for the new Duster are for the hybrid version.”