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by 2026, there will be a charging station every 60 km in Europe

The European Parliament and the Member States have just reached an agreement which plans to intensify the development of electric charging infrastructure on the Old Continent. The ambitions are displayed: to have a charging station every 60 km on the motorway by 2030.

eu agreement charging station
Credit: 123RF

The EU has just taken the next step in the decarbonisation of the automotive industry in the Old Continent. After having voted for the definitive entry into force of the ban on the sale of new thermal cars from 2035 – with the exception of vehicles running on e-fuel at the “forced request” of Germany – the European Parliament and the Member States have just reached a new agreement.

This new measure, called “Afir”, aims to intensify the development of electric charging infrastructure and alternative fuels on the main European roads. For that, each country will have binding targets to achieve.

Terminals every 60 km on the motorway from 2030

Among them, installation of fast charging stations (at least 400 kW capacity) every 60 kilometers on the main European motorways by 2026. Note that this capacity will have to be increased to 600 kW by 2028. Remember that this proposal was already mentioned by the European Council of Ministers of Transport in June 2022.

But that’s not all. Arrangements have also been made for trucks and buses. So, compatible charging stations must be positioned every 120 km on these same lines. These stations should be installed on half of the EU’s main roads by 2028, with a capacity between 400 and 2800 kW depending on the locations. In addition, hydrogen stations will have to be set up every 200 km on major European arteries by 2031, but also in urban centers.

By setting binding targets for charging infrastructure across the European Union, the regulation will put an end to consumer concerns about the difficulty of charging their vehicle.” welcomes the European Commission.

Credits: Unsplash

Facilitate payments and offer more transparency

Lawmakers have also addressed the thorny issue of payment terms. The goal ? Simplify the process and put an end to the current system of payment cards specific to each charging network. Drivers should be able to easily pay via “their bank card, contactless devices or, in some cases, using QR Codes”.

In addition, the Parliament requires from the operators of the networks greater transparency on pricing, with prices displayed per kW/h, per minute or per kilogram (in the case of hydrogen). In addition, the prices charged must be “reasonable, easily and clearly comparable, transparent and non-discriminatory”.

Goals not stringent enough

In the eyes of some key players in the automotive industry, such as ACEA (the Association of European Automobile Manufacturers), these objectives are not binding enough to achieve a 55% reduction in CO2 emissions in member countries by 2030.

The compromise found between Member States and Parliament falls far short of what would be necessary to support the objectives of reducing CO2 emissions from the product mix of car manufacturers. The lack of infrastructure will therefore continue to limit the decarbonisation of our sector”, declares the federation in the columns of Echoes. The association points the finger in particular the numerous derogations which the Member States will be able to claimwhich will inevitably cause disparities (quality, quantity and power of terminals) in the European charging offer.

EU charging station objective
Credits: Pixabay

France is already among the good students

With its commitment made in 2020 by Emmanuel Macron to reach 100,000 terminals in France, France already has a considerable lead to exceed the target set by the EU overnight from Monday to Tuesday. In truth, this will soon be the case, since the French government hopes to reach this milestone by the summer of 2023. At the end of February, the country had 90,000 charging stations.

However, and as Avere France pointed out in its latest report, efforts must now be made in the quality and power of the terminals. And yes, 90% of the existing fleet only offers slow charging, under 22 kW of power.

Coming back to the informal agreement reached between Parliament and the Member States, let us point out that the game is still far from over. In effect, the final version of the text still needs to be approved by the European Parliament and by the Council of the European Union before entering into force.

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