Despite the challenging conditions of 2022, Arval managed to increase the size of its leased fleet by 8.3% to a total of 1.6 million, the leasing and mobility provider has announced.

These figures include Arval's recent purchases of Terberg Business Lease Group, a mobility provider in the Netherlands (100,000 vehicles), and the transfer of Romania’s BCR fleet to Arval Romania (3800 vehicles).

Growth was still positive, at 5.5% organic growth, if the acquisitions were stripped out, said Arval,. The company also said 300,000 electrified vehicles had been added to the fleet, four times the number compared with 2019.

“Despite a challenging 2022 environment, Arval successfully continued to support its clients, thanks to a resilient business model and its capacity to offer new innovative solutions,” commented  Alain van Groenendael, Arval chairman and CEO.

“Backed by the strong strategic ambitions of the BNP Paribas Group in the field of mobility, Arval will pursue its growth trajectory in 2023, further advancing its 'Arval Beyond' strategy. We will continue to strengthen our growth by innovating, by further supporting our customers in their energy transition and providing them with sustainable mobility offers across all our countries.”

Electric vehicles increase in the U.K.

Turning to the U.K. market, Arval UK reported that its fleet had also seen positive growth of 2.5% to 187,208 vehicles, having added 54,000 electrified vehicles with 29,000 of which are pure electric vehicles.

The company said favorable taxation of electric vehicles had accelerated the take up of EVs.

It had also deployed electric cargo bikes as part of its mobility solutions for international corporations operating in the U.K.

“Our U.K. customers are forging a path in the electrification of our global fleet, achieving their own sustainable mobility goals and adding almost 29,000 zero-emission electric vehicles to the country’s roads in a year,” said Lakshmi Moorthy, Arval UK managing director.

“The future will see an increased drive to also help commercial vehicle customers to transition to the same zero-emission vehicles and a move to support all customers (and their employees) as the cost of living continues to rise, through tax-efficient products like Ignition for salary sacrifice and used-car leasing via Arval Re-Lease.

“Additionally, we will increase the range of products on offer, adding new mobility solutions and flexible subscriptions, while continuing to provide best in class services to fleets of all sizes, brokers, dealers and individual drivers. We’d like to thank all our customers and partners for their continued support through a challenging period for our industry.”

Moorthy added that its mid-term rental fleet grew by 58%, offering customers increased flexibility and the opportunity to try out electric cars and vans as part of  a decarbonizing approach to fleet operations.