GERMANY plans to expand the network of charging stations for electric cars across the country to help boost lackluster demand, a Transport Ministry paper seen by Reuters showed.

    Chancellor Angela Merkel wants to bring 1 million battery-powered vehicles onto the roads of Europe’s largest economy by the end of the decade.

    But high vehicle costs and drivers’ concerns about infrastructure and limited battery range have held back sales in Germany to just 24,000 models out of a market of about 3 million cars, according to government data.

    Germany currently only has about 100 quick service charging points for electric cars, allowing drivers to recharge batteries in less than an hour, and about 4,800 charging stations running on alternating current, according to the Transport Ministry.

    The Transport Ministry paper said German motorway services operator Tank & Rast GmbH was due to set up quick service charging stations and parking spots at its 400 sites by 2017. (SD-Agencies)