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ELECTRIC OPTIONS
February 2022 FIGHT ON: VW’s ID.4 is aimed at taking on Tesla
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Cash incentives for electric cars are introduced in Spain as we take a look at popular options
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PAIN has pledged to make the entire country carbon them into the reach of By Dilip Kuner neutral by 2050, and for many more people’s wallets. to happen cars are goingthis One of the most unusual to the country. have to get greener. Tesla Cybertruck. Aimed will be the Volkswagen Group’s SEAT It’s automotive plan focuses squarely at from subsidon the iary plans to Volvo’s environmentally-friendl team up with power the US market where ‘trucks’ are a new electric company Iberdrola huge segment, this retro-futuristic perforand hybrid car industryy to build Spain’s and aims to first battery mance arm make the technology cheaper, factory for Electric Vehi- ‘space machine’ is sure to make it (the other, the and cles (EVs). to Spain at some point. easier to use and access 1, is a hybrid across the Volkswagen country. has previously an- Clad in dent-proof stainless steel petrol-electric), it looks like something nounced its intention to Special incentives have out of Mad build alternaout over the coming been rolled battery plants across Europe,six EV Max, and according to Tesla boss and with tive models years to encourage the three earmarked for Elon Musk it will be a ‘really tough, and specs are ownership of green the Spain/Portugal/ not fake-tough’ truck. planned Mind you, he ended for vehicles, both private The government southern France up with egg this year. area. on his face at the vehicle’s launch and commercial. In total, the governApart from its when he tried to prove is granting The Spanish government its durability green is granting motor, ment has approved an €3.75 billion towards through a series of ‘torture tests’. Volvo €3.75bn to €800 million fund up making electric and All was going well until Musk hurled i n t has also r o d a u steel c make e d ball at the vehicle and shatuntil the end of 2023, electric hybrid cars cheaper frameless mirrors and which is available now. than petrol and diesel tered its ‘armoured’ glass. a light- The interior cars cheaper er-than-leather vegan interior is While Tesla has been Private buyers can to buy by 2027. fabric low, flat floor andminimalist, with a the leader designed a vibe that Nissan claim up to €7,000, But there is no need in EVs (particularly in the publicity a wetsuit. to mimic the durability of calls ‘lounge-like’. with companies buying to wait that long if you stakes) it will have more competi- A pair claimed range of aroundIt has a fleets to use wish to of electric motors work tion than ever this year, 300 miles as taxis eligible for more. help with with main- 27-module Vans can manufacturerssave the planet. Car stream manufacturers lithium ion battery packa and pricing is from around €40,000. attract subsidies of up have been developThis performance and to €9,000. ready to unveil a slew of not only to deliver an impressive 402 horseing electric vehicles for These incentives follow years wrapped in a package luxury will be nology models, but alsolatest-tech- power, and a range of up to with a range ment pledge to promote a govern- While still more expensive thannow. 275 of 200 miles. It ahead of miles. But all battery pro- traditional their costs from around this comes duction in Spain and push contemporaries, subsi- the game. at a price with the luxFor build quality €75,000. ufacture of electric vehiclesthe man- dies and scrappage schemes are neering Volvo and top-class engi- ury car costing from in Meanwhile bringing Their Polestaris worth a close look. €59,900. The Audi e-tron swagen’s ID.4 VolkThe compaEXPENSIVE: 2 five-seater SUV Volvo polish and Swedish brings ny aims to sell 65,000 is aimed squarely The Audi style to units this year. GT is a sleek at taking on Tescompete with Tesla’s e-tron GT Model 3. It When it comes is the second vehicle electric sedan la. Starting prices to mainto come stream manufacturers, are from around with loads of Nissan was one of the €46,000 in Spain first to enter the marand it has a range of power ket. Its LeafEV now has 250 miles. sales of nearly half a Staying with the Germillion. man marques, the Audi e-tron GT is a sleek, The car giant is aiming electric sebuild on this success to dan with loads of power and polish. hav- Behind the streamlined ing recently launched bodywork the Ariiya, a more stylish take is some architecture shared with the Porsche Taycan EV. on emission-free t r a n s - With 590 horsepower, portation. the two-moThe five-passenger SUV tor GT should accelerate from zero features a surprisingly to 60 miles per hour in an impresaggressive look, with some sive three seconds, and will be able to gain an 80% charge swoopy, concave in just and wheels pushed to thesurfacing minutes. The car is top-of-the 20 rancorners. geo expect to pay €100,000 plus.
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OLIVE PRESS
Find out Property what top Bye bye Bofill real estate experts predict for A the year ahead KEEP THE G O D in our TIMES ROLLO IN G Property magazine www.theolivepress.es
February 2022
Your expat
voice in Spain
VALENCIA / COSTA AZAHAR FREE Vol. 1 Issue 32 www.theolivepress.es February 24th - March 9th 2022
A taste of the future or a galactic waste of money? See page VIII
The Olive Press Spanish genius, pays tribute to a tenticles spread whose architectural widely, and were even said to have hit tv series the inspired last years Squid Game
SPANISH architectural legend has died. Ricardo Bofill died aged 82 last month, Calpe made 2023 a year before the ‘Bofill Year’ to celebrate his remarkable creations and he was set to get a Spanish national stamp. The Catalan was one of the most celebrated architects of the 20th century and a pioneer of the style that came to be known as postmodernism . Like Richard Rogers ter his influence has or Norman Fosbeen vast. When Netflix released Squid Game, which would become the series in its history, most watched noticed an uncanny many viewers tween the striking resemblance bestaircases patrolled by masked guards and one of Bofill’s most famous works (The Red Wall) on La Muralla Roja the Costa Blanca.
HOME sales in December were the second-highest And 2022 has kicked off where last year ended… on record in Spain. up! going up and up and Andalucia, Valencia and fore,” explained Scott each seeing spectacular Murcia are leading the charge on the mainland, enquiries are coming Marshall, from PropertieSpain in Benahavis. While Andalucia saw growth by over a quarter against last Christmas. in thick and fast.” “And Meanwhile, Ben Bateman “Sales were up Murcia posted figures 29% more sales than last December, Valencia from Sotogrande’s Holmes of 26% and 25% respectively. could be a record year and ered the ground26% on 2019, showing the market has more agency added: “It The Balearics experienced if we it lost to the pandemic. than a 41% uplift, while the The Spanish housing recov- “Last year was the best yearcan get the right number of new listings. rise in December’s year Canaries saw a 44% undergoing a post-pandemic boom in sales.” market is 2022.” since 2008 and we remain on year figures. In total, 72,023 property “Home sales in December confident for sales were completed to official figures. in December, according Adam Neale, at Terra Meridiana, in buoyant Spain’s housing set almost a record high, illustrating quite Estepona, market is despite the last year, with nearly the pandemic,” said property ongoing repercussionshow According to a trio of leading estate 100 million of properties also recorded record sales “It was of also begun well, analyst Mark Stucklin. despite concerns over agents in Andalucia, the year has ing, a very busy year and it didn’t stop last sold in 2021. particularly now people month, it just keeps comsupply. “We sold three properties can travel again.” in January, which is three more than ever be- The highest December property figures 80,000 properties were were in 2010 when sold around Spain. nearly
After almost record December sales, January is also perform ing strongly
LIFE IS SWEET VALENCIA is the world’s healthiest city, according to a new report. It ranked top out of 96 cities for factors including life expectancy, pollution, mental health and also substance abuse. Valencia also boasts glorious weather, low pollution and very good healthcare, according to the report.
Balance
“The musical and cultural heritage of the city is rich, and residents there put a strong emphasis on social connection, leading to a very healthy work-life balance,” claimed James Andrews from money.co.uk. Valencia’s top spot was closely followed by Madrid, Canberra and Lisbon, while Barcelona was also in the top 20. Researchers looked at 21 metrics to determine a city’s health ranking – 700 initial cities were whittled down to 96 as not all provided relevant data for each metric.
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LET THERE BE LIGHT! A GROUP of expat pensioners are struggling without water and electricity after Iberdrola cut off their supply. The furious residents, some of them over 80-years-old, have been surviving with generators after the electricity giant deemed their supply in the Jalon Valley ‘unsafe’. One woman in her 60s is being forced to ‘strip wash’, using water saved in her bathtub, while another 82-year-old has no water despite having just got out of hospital after a hip replacement. Most lost food from their fridges and freezers while also being forced to travel into town to ask friends to
EXCLUSIVE By Joshua Parfitt
help with their laundry. Currently, 20 homes in the Solana urbanisation have no water and 13 have neither water or electricity. “It should be a warning for anyone buying in Spain how quickly things can deteriorate,” said one resident Chris Parsons, 68. “Whether Iberdrola is right or wrong about the safety, the fact their technicians just came in and turned it off is really third world,” he added. “Imagine if someone up here was on oxygen or dialysis?” He continued that the group had been paying their coun-
Costa Blanca pensioners living without water and electricity after being cut off by Iberdrola
cil tax of between €300 to €400 annually, so ‘at the very least’ the authorities should be helping. But the town hall has ‘refused to pay’ and they are still waiting for a ‘proper explanation’ from Iberdrola as to why their urbanisation was cut off in mid-January. The cluster of houses have had their water piped from an electric-operated borehole for the last three decades.
The electricity supply was initially installed by a developer over 30 years ago, but the company went bust and the banks bought up the surrounding land. The residents insist they cannot afford to pay for any new infrastructure, with a bill of ‘at least’ €15,000 being suggested for solar panels, plus installation on top. He said initial meetings with the town hall had been fruitless, but new meetings were planned for this week. This week their new lawyer told them that ‘unless residents agree to pay for new infrastructure the urbanisation will be ‘deleted from the Iberdrola supply list and power will be terminated permanently’.