Zapmap & GFI urge focus on chargepoint utilisation rather than numbers
Fri 30 June 2023
View all news
A paper published by Zapmap in association with the Green Finance Institute suggests that measures of the effectiveness of the UK's drive to install electric chargepoint infrastructure need to focus on alternative, utilisation-based metrics rather than the simple numbers of chargepoints being installed. Meanwhile, separate Shell-commissioned research (by LCP Delta) suggests EV adoption is accelerating in several key European markets and is having a positive impact on driver perceptions, including range anxiety.
Success in the Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure (EVCI) sector, the authors say, should focus more on where chargepoints are and how they are used. The comments echo many of those in a 'think-piece' by Zemo's CEO, Andy Eastlake, recently published on LinkedIn, and also add weight to the need to better educate future EV drivers on how to make the best of the public chargepoints available; an issue Zemo is actively investigating.
The new report – which aims to help investors and local authorities look beyond the number of charge points installed as a success metric, and consider how to ensure the right charging devices are in the right place – shows how utilisation of charging is changing over time.
The report says that there is no industry-standard definition or calculation for the utilisation of EV charging infrastructure in the UK, but GFI and Zapmap propose two effective ways to measure, understand and act upon utilisation rates.
Thanks to its partnerships with UK chargepoint operators, Zapmap is able to record and analyse hundreds of thousands of charging sessions each month – from around 70% of all public chargepoints across the UK.
The overall picture sees time-based metrics showing higher utilisation at a relatively even level across power ratings, with energy-based metrics demonstrating a lower level of utilisation that varies significantly across power ratings.
Melanie Shufflebotham, Co-founder & COO at Zapmap, said: “It’s great to see these utilisation figures coming into the public domain because they can really help us move the conversation on from simply talking about the number of chargepoints to looking more closely at charging behaviour and patterns on different types of chargers. This in turn can help to inform local authorities and investment, ensuring the right charging provision is installed in the right places.
“As ever, new analysis often raises more questions than it answers. But one clear trend that both measures highlight is the increasing utilisation of ultra-rapid chargepoints, and an expectation that this will continue as more vehicles enter the market with improved charging capabilities.”
Lauren Pamma, Director for Transport Programmes at the Green Finance Institute, said: “The data in this white paper is the start to providing financiers with the information and clarity they need to understand utilisation, and therefore reduce the risk in financing the infrastructure underpinning the EV transition. Zapmap’s data has the potential to enable innovative financing mechanisms such as utilisation-linked loans, which the Green Finance Institute has been developing, to be realised.”
The report says that collaboration between the public and private sectors to reorientate the definition of success towards utilisation is pivotal to maximise investment in the EVCI sector. Doing so will enable and de-risk investment in less commercially viable areas to drive the transition and deliver an equitable and just path to net zero.
Related news: New research commissioned by Shell and conducted by LCP Delta suggests that EV adoption is accelerating in several key European markets and is having a positive impact on driver perceptions, including range anxiety. The latest findings reflect the record-breaking growth in global EV sales witnessed over the last twelve months.
The Shell Recharge EV Driver Survey 2023 is one of the largest research projects into the attitudes and behaviours of European EV drivers. In its sixth consecutive year, the latest report looks at the view of nearly 25,000 drivers across Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK.
Encouragingly, the data shows that real-world EV experience, technology advances and growth in charging infrastructure are having a positive impact on driver attitudes:
Only 14% of EV drivers say they refrain from taking longer journeys;
The number of respondents travelling to other European countries by EV, and having a good charging experience, has increased by 5%, while reluctance to drive abroad because of charging or range concerns is down 7% and 5% respectively;
Drivers are becoming more relaxed about when EVs are charged, with 47% of respondents saying that they do not need to charge daily.
For more information see LCP Delta's news release.
Related Links
< Back to news list