The UK boss of Renault has praised the brand's move to electrify its fleet and cut costs for motorists as it makes major strides in electric vehicle sales.
Renault is one of the UK's most popular car brands and is quickly becoming one of the most recognisable manufacturers for affordable electric vehicles.
Renault already sells a number of popular electric cars for the UK market, including the 5 E-Tech, R5 Turbo 3E, 4 E-Tech, Scenic E-Tech and Megane E-Tech.
They also offer electric options for tradespeople and businesses with the Master, Kangoo E-Tech and Trafic E-Tech vans.
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Renault already has several electric vehicles in its UK lineup, including the new 5 E-Tech
RENAULTThe new Renault 4 E-Tech has won numerous awards, including Electric Car of the Year and Best Compact EV at the Top Gear Awards, while the R5 Turbo 3E is one of the most highly anticipated vehicles in restricted production.
Adam Wood, managing director of Renault UK, said the manufacturer was working to make electric cars more accessible to motorists.
He said: "We have a very clear strategy to grow our electric mix as we expand our product lineup. It's what we call a 'strategy on two legs', so battery-electric and full-hybrid.
"This time last year, we had one electric model with the Megane for around a five per cent mix, but by the end of the year, when we launched the Scenic, we had a 15 per cent mix.
The Renault 5 E-Tech starts from just £22,995
RENAULT
"Today, we are now at 21 per cent and in the month of April, we’re at a 33 per cent battery-electric mix for the month," he told the PA news agency.
The upcoming Renault R4 will begin deliveries later this year, although a price is not yet known. The vehicle has a range of up to 250 miles and can charge from 15 to 80 per cent in just 30 minutes.
Prices for the Renault 5 E-Tech start from £22,995 for a 120hp powertrain or £26,995 for a 150hp model.
Data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) shows that Renault has sold 22,062 vehicles so far this year, worth an impressive market share of 3.15 per cent.
This is also a staggering 17.4 per cent rise in the number of registrations compared to the same time last year, when the French brand sold 18,787 cars.
Despite the UK seeing a 10 per cent drop in new car registrations in April, Renault maintained a 3.6 per cent share of the market, beating rival firms like Citroen, Fiat, Honda, Tesla and Volvo.
Wood added: "It shows you that as we expand our product lineup, we are growing the demand for EVs, and we are the number one retail EV brand in the UK for the month of April. And, R5 is the number one electric model in UK retail.
"It shows that the combination of accessible pricing and also an emotional design will really start to attract a new EV customer."
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The electric Renault 4 E-Tech will be released later this year
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Renault has previously pledged to have the "greenest mix" in the European market in 2025, with over 65 per cent of electric and hybrid vehicles in the sales mix.
This will go even further by the end of the decade with an aim of having a 90 per cent battery electric vehicle mix.
