Volvo Cars is offering Swedish car buyers one year of free home charging with the launch of its free charge initiative. Volvo Cars is partnering with Swedish energy company Vattenfall to introduce this offer, which aims to make the switch to fully electric cars more attractive and accessible for more customers.
Insights from the first phase in Sweden will lay the foundation for a broader global rollout, where Volvo Cars will develop partnerships with other sustainable energy providers. “The plan is to scale and adapt the initiative in Europe and beyond,” says the manufacturer.
Starting in 2026, up to 25,000 km
From February 2026, new fully electric car customers in Sweden will benefit from complimentary fossil-free home charging for one year, unlocking up to 25,000km of free fully electric driving per year. The offer applies immediately to private customers, whether they purchase or lease their car.
To benefit from the offer, customers must have an active electricity retail contract with Vattenfall and charge the BEV under the same electricity meter (villa or semi-detached house), using the smart charging feature in the Volvo Cars app.
Smart charging actively supports the energy system by shifting the charging to times of lower cost and typically lower CO2 emissions. The app will track the car’s energy consumption and allow owners to monitor the car battery’s charging status. The electricity costs for charging their car will be calculated and deducted from their monthly Vattenfall bill.
Savings will vary depending on the type of electricity contract, the amount of energy charged, and the electricity price, limited to a maximum of 1.5 SEK / kWh for average monthly consumption. Volvo Cars will cover up to 5,150kWh per year, which corresponds to 25,000km of driving (based on the EX90 WLTP driving cycle). Eligible customers will be guided through the sign-up process, and free charging will thus start in February 2026.
“We are listening to our customers, and by providing free charging offers, we hope to create value for them and accelerate our collective journey to a smarter, greener society,” says Alejandro Castro Pérez, Vice President of Energy Solutions at Volvo Cars.
Active role for EVs in the energy system
A key ambition of Volvo Cars is to showcase its vision of how cars can play an active role in the future energy ecosystem. When vehicle-to-everything (V2X) becomes available in 2026, Volvo Cars will expand the program to include a special offer for bi-directionally enabled cars, such as the EX90.
Customers will then be able to use their car battery as an extra energy supply, for example, to power their home or sell energy back to the grid (V2G). Like the French manufacturer Renault and its Alliance partner Nissan, Volvo is also a firm believer in the benefits of electric cars in the entire energy system.
Volvo Cars and Vattenfall have a longstanding history of collaboration in sustainable mobility. “Together, we have worked to make electrification more accessible and impactful through initiatives such as the development of the world’s first diesel plug-in hybrid, the Volvo V60, launched in 2012, and Vattenfall’s supply of fossil-free energy to Volvo Cars’ plant in Torslanda, Sweden,” says the press release.
“We warmly welcome this initiative from Volvo Cars to boost a future where everyone can choose fossil-free ways of transportation,” says Branislav Slavic, Head of Customers & Solutions at Vattenfall Nordics.
“Volvo Cars adding an offer of free home charging from Vattenfall, when purchasing a new electric car, is a positive, sustainable step. Working together to encourage the use of electric cars with fossil-free electricity, starting in Sweden, is incredibly inspiring,” he adds.
Accelerate the transition
The two companies share a common goal: “to accelerate the transition to electrification and help customers get the most out of their electric cars, while lowering the threshold for new customers to switch to electric driving.”
Volvo Cars already has five fully electric models on the road, and the new EX60 is set to be launched in January next year. In addition, there is a line-up of Volvo plug-in hybrids and mild hybrids for customers who aren’t quite ready to go fully electric.
In any case, Volvo Cars is not going to change its policy on EVs, unlike many of its competitors. Despite the fact that after the record year in 2024 (in both sales and revenue), this year has seen slumping sales for the (Chinese-owned) Swedish company and a serious decrease in turnover and revenue, Volvo Cars continues its electrification policy.
To put things straight, it has recalled former CEO Hakan Samuelsson for at least 2 years. He has immediately installed a ‘reparation plan’ with cost-cutting measures but he also stays attached to the electrification path he started himself years ago. Although the company had to adjust its electrification ambitions last year, it remains persuaded that the future will be electric and that Volvo will be part of it.
