Beautiful Greek Island Becomes Sustainable Eco-Hub and Citroen Wants a Piece of the Action

Now, here’s something about Chalki that you might not know. It’s part of a pioneering project meant to transform the island with a focus on sustainability. In other words, it’s a “laboratory” where green energy is being implemented in multiple fields of expertise, including the automotive sector. This is where Citroen comes in.

The French carmaker has decided to invest in this small island and together with the Greek government, they are now undertaking all measure to transform Chalki into an electric island, running on green energy – something that’s supposed to be available to all residents, businesses and public authorities.

It all starts with electric mobility, with Citroen keen to see residents and authorities take full advantage of the electric vehicles that are being made accessible on the island.

Citroen is kicking things off in Halki with a small fleet of six EVs, designated for public authorities. Two Ami city cars will go to the Police and Coast Guard, along with two new e-C4 models, while one e-Spacetourer minivan goes to the Municipality of Halki, and one e-Dispatch model being delivered to the Energy Community of Halki. These vehicles are all being supplied on a free 48 month lease, after which the carmaker will buy back the cars and donate them to the Municipality of Halki permanently.

“We are really glad to collaborate with the Island of Halki on this exceptional project. This collaboration is completely in keeping with the spirit of Citroen, an innovative and daring brand, closely connected with people in their daily lives and their mobility,” said Citroen CEO, Vincent Cobee.

He then went on to say that his company is “committed to making electrification available to everyone and we believe that this is a source of progress within the society. We are very proud to contribute to the transformation of Halki island into an island which will be autonomous, smart and sustainable.”

Since the main goal here is to improve the quality of life for the island’s residents, Citroen and partners such as Syngelidis Group have already set the wheels in motion on a plan to replace all the old vehicles there with brand new electric ones. Citroen will thus provide residents and businesses with the opportunity to acquire zero-emission vehicles through a wide range of smart mobility options – from light quadricycles to passenger and commercial vehicles.

This will ultimately result in better air quality, less noise pollution, and an overall cleaner environment, which is something we can all aspire to, regardless of where we live.

With Halki set to become the so-called first Greek-ECO island, we can’t help but wonder when such projects could be implemented to larger islands and cities. Imagine such an initiative in Hawaii. It will surely happen, but the question is how many more decades it could take – phasing out all internal combustion engine cars is tricky, but at the same time, inevitable.

If we’re talking about a considerably bigger project (as opposed to one small Greek island), it stands to reason that several carmakers should be getting involved with regards to electric mobility, and that government officials should be doing everything possible to facilitate this switch, from investing in infrastructure to offering subsidies.

We look forward to someday visiting a place that’s entirely self-sufficient and eco-friendly. Think Masdar City (a planned sustainable city project in Abu Dhabi), only bigger.