BP Unplugs in Austria, Bets Big on EV Hubs

BP quits Austria’s EV market to double down on Germany and UK growth

3 Apr 2025

In the contest to electrify road transport, BP has decided that Austria is no longer worth the charge. On March 27th, the energy firm announced plans to sell its 260-strong retail and fuel network in Austria, including its electric vehicle (EV) charging points, to ENI, an Italian rival. The decision is part of a broader pivot under CEO Murray Auchincloss to tighten the firm’s investment focus and please a restive shareholder base.

Austria, for all its Alpine charm, is a minor player in the EV transition compared with heavyweights like Germany and Britain. Those larger markets offer more generous subsidies, faster infrastructure deployment, and scale that justifies the cost of entry. “Austria’s a great market, but we’re focusing our resources where we see the biggest impact,” a BP source admitted. That impact increasingly means more profitable, scalable bets rather than ideological commitments to clean energy.

BP’s withdrawal is part of a multibillion-dollar divestment plan aimed at shedding slower-growth operations and sharpening its capital allocation. After a flirtation with bold net-zero ambitions, the firm is now charting a more cautious course. Building an EV network, it turns out, is a costly slog. Margins are thin, demand is uneven, and regulators are unpredictable.

Still, Austria’s EV sector may not mourn BP’s departure for long. The infrastructure left behind could serve as a launchpad for local firms or regional utilities eager to expand. Government incentives are rising, and public enthusiasm for clean transport is building. In time, this could become a rare example of an oil major's retreat inadvertently catalysing a more decentralised, homegrown charging network.

This is not an abandonment of the EV future, merely a sign that strategies are maturing. Once a race to blanket the map with charging points, the new game favours surgical precision: fewer countries, deeper commitment, higher returns. In BP’s calculus, Austria no longer fits that formula.