Galway's Western Motors has named the County Galway winner of the ZEVI Electric Vehicle Dealership of the Year Awards.
The awards recognise and reward excellence in the promotion and sales of electric vehicles (EV ) in Ireland, and Western Motors will now go on to the regional finals with the winner announced at the SIMI Irish Motor Industry Awards February 16.
Some 124 car dealerships from 24 counties participated in the second EV Dealership Awards with one overall national winner to be be announced at SEAI Energy Show on March 30.
Zero Vehicles Emissions Ireland (ZEVI ) is a dedicated office within the Department of Transport, and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland promoting the sale of EVs.
Funded by ZEVI, these SEAI administered awards recognise the dealerships who are working to increase consumers understanding and experience of EVs and their uptake on Irish roads.
Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said there were record sales of EVs in Ireland last year.
"The awards commend the hard work of the car dealers supporting their clients making the switch to electric and celebrate the growing shift towards sustainable clean transport,"he says. "It’s an exciting time to be working in this growing area. As the sales of EVs continue to grow, it is the award winners of today who are setting the standards and demonstrating the expertise needed in this industry in future.”
Commenting on today’s announcement Declan Mea lly, director of business for SEAI's public sector and transport the 2023 dealer awards were extremely competitive/
"We want to congratulate the 24 county award winners. It is inspiring to see the continued commitment and dedication of the dealerships to reducing emissions in the transport sector and helping Ireland develop a cleaner, more efficient transport future. It is great to see a significant increase not only in EV sales, but in participation in the 2023 awards. SEAI recognises that car dealerships and their staff are a key enabler of EV uptake and are delighted to reward excellence in the showroom.”
Commenting on their win, James McCormack, managing director at Western Motors says the company aspires to deliver a high level of knowledge and sales experience for consumers when purchasing an electric vehicle.
"The electrification of transport is a crucial part of the journey to reducing emissions in the transport sector and achieving the Climate Action Plan (CAP ) targets. These awards are important for recognising the efforts of dealerships and staff across the country and industry to encourage the uptake of EVs in Ireland. We’re looking forward to the announcement of the Regional Winners in the coming weeks.”
The four regional winners will shortlisted for the overall national winner award which will be announced at the SEAI Energy Show taking place in the RDS, Dublin on March 30.
For full details on all winning dealerships, visit www.seai.ie