Merkel's electric cars push: 1 million car charging points in Germany by 2030, says Chancellor

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel wants to drastically increase the number of charging stations for electric cars in Germany to give consumers more confidence to switch over to electric from internal combustion engines.

Speaking in her weekly video podcast Sunday, Merkel said she wants Germany to have 1 million charging stations by 2030.

Germany currently has about 21,000 charging stations.

The comments come ahead of her meeting Monday with automobile industry executives as part of efforts to help Germany's transport sector meet emissions targets.

In addition to talking about Germany's charging infrastructure, Merkel says those at the meeting will discuss government and industry incentives for electric cars and how to protect auto industry jobs amid the transition to producing more environmentally friendly vehicles.

She says the development of hydrogen-powered cars can also play a role.