Hertz Electrifies Its Fleet: 50k EVs Available for Car Rental

In the first quarter of the year, car rental company Hertz manufactured 50,000 electric vehicles in its fleet, comprising roughly 10% of the entire number of vehicles in its inventory. The number is expected to rise in the next quarters as thousands of EVs are on order from Tesla, Polestar, and General Motors.

By the end of 2021, Hertz company announced a massive investment in 100,000 Tesla vehicles, that were supposed to amount to 20 percent of the overall fleet. But, as we see from the recent number, the company’s initial plan didn’t really work out how it intended. However, the American car rental company has kept up its investment in electrifying its business, placing two more orders for 65,000 electric vehicles from Polestar and another 175,000 from General Motors.

Adding everything up results in a fleet of 340,000 EVs at the end of 2027. In addition, Hertz and the oil giant BP have an agreement to develop and roll out an extensive nationwide network of EV charging stations for the rental firm and its clients, powered by BP Pulse.

Due to increased demand from the leisure and business sectors, the company's sales in the first three months of this year reached $2 billion, a 13% year-over-year (YOY) rise. Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr said the company has getting profit day by day:

Our continued investments in the business, particularly in the areas of technology and electrification, are improving our operational cadence, extending our reach in rideshare, and enabling the revitalization of our value brands.

In the first quarter, the automobile rental company began receiving EV deliveries from GM and Polestar, increasing the selection of zero-emission models available to clients. Additionally, the company has a partnership with Uber that allows drivers to rent an electric car which reportedly increases their payout by 10-15 percent compared to the internal combustion engine car, thanks to the lower operation and maintenance cost.

Recently, the Hertz company launched the ‘Hertz Electrifies Program’ which not only helps to improve the EV charging infrastructure but also gives opportunities to the local students in the cities where the program is held. Although the program is already active in Denver, with Houston and Atlanta to follow. Lastly, the American car rental company estimates that its electric car rental business will increase five times in 2023 compared to the last year which amounts to two million to its fleet.