Electric vehicle charging: new EU regulatory requirements

The European Green Deal calls for a 90% reduction in transport emissions as part of the EU’s aim to become climate-neutral by 2050. As a first step, the EU has committed in its ‘Fit for 55’ package to reduce its net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030.

To achieve these ambitious goals in the mobility sector, a dense network of easily accessible electric vehicle charging points is needed. To ensure that there is enough recharging infrastructure with good coverage across the EU, it adopted the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) in 2023, replacing the previous Directive. 

AFIR became applicable on 13 April 2024. Several further requirements for EV charging will soon become applicable from 14 October 2024.

Background for AFIR: shortcomings of the old Directive

The previous EU Directive did not establish specific requirements as to the extent or time frame for the rollout of charging infrastructure. Transposition in national laws was quite different (see our previously report on several amendments to the German Charging Point Regulation). As a result, the European Commission found that charging infrastructure had developed unevenly across the EU, also lacking interoperability and user friendliness.

Key elements of the new AFIR

AFIR now establishes mandatory national minimum targets for electric vehicle infrastructure expansion and lays down provisions for the operation of such infrastructure. Hence, the AFIR is addressed not only to EU Member States, but also to operators of charging points and other stakeholders, such as mobility service providers. Being a regulation, the AFIR is binding and directly applicable without a need for transposition into national law. 

Some of AFIR’s provisions significantly impact Europe’s EV sector.

Mandatory minimum targets for publicly accessible charging points

The EU’s emission reduction ambitions in the mobility sector can only be met if accompanied by an equally ambitious charging infrastructure rollout. Studies show that consumers will switch to EVs only if they can trust in the existence of a reliable and attractive charging network. Hence, the availability of recharging infrastructure across the EU is key in determining its future market share of electric vehicles.

Under AFIR, Member States must ensure that fleet-based and distance-based targets regarding the deployment of publicly accessible recharging infrastructure are met. For example, on main roads, publicly accessible charging stations shall be provided at least every 60 km for passenger cars and vans by the end of 2025, for trucks and buses by the end of 2030.

Automotive industry associations such as ACEA and VDA welcomed the introduction of legally binding targets for the deployment of recharging infrastructure, while noting that the AFIR targets did not go far enough. The industry now calls on governments across the EU to swiftly ramp up investments in recharging infrastructure, bearing in mind that the AFIR sets minimum targets only. 

Technical specifications and user friendliness

To ensure that consumers can use the charging infrastructure across the EU, the AFIR contains directly applicable obligations for operators of publicly accessible charging points, including technical specifications. For example, operators of publicly accessible charging points shall allow so-called ad-hoc charging without a long-term contract and accept credit card payment from certain dates onwards which was heavily criticised during the legislative process. Notably, these obligations do not exclusively apply to new installations, but in some cases also to already existing charging points, which have to be retrofitted accordingly.

Overall, industry associations such as AVERE and ChargeUp Europe said they support efforts to harmonise and enhance the user experience at recharging points, making electric mobility more attractive to consumers. However, they also criticised some measures, including the credit card requirement, for being too detailed and costly, placing disproportionate burdens upon charging point operators.

New technical specifications applicable from 14 October 2024 will require all existing and new charging points to be digitally connected to enable them to receive information in real time, communicate bi-directionally with the electricity grid and the electric vehicle, and be monitored and controlled remotely. Furthermore, renovated infrastructure will have to be capable of smart charging.

A number of legal issues arise in this context, for example the sometimes difficult question of whether charging points are publicly accessible and whether therefore AFIR rules apply at all.

Pricing

AFIR also lays down rules regarding permissible pricing structures for charging and purchased electricity. Prices charged by operators of publicly accessible charging points shall be reasonable, easily and clearly comparable, transparent, and non-discriminatory. 

AFIR does not provide specific thresholds or criteria to determine whether prices charged are reasonable. Its recitals merely state that prices “should not exceed the costs incurred plus a reasonable profit margin”. The European Commission acknowledged that this has to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, without providing further guidance. 

This situation currently leaves operators of publicly accessible charging points with legal uncertainties. Until respective market standards are developed, additional guidance may be taken from the principles of abusive pricing established in general competition law. The application of such principles in the context of pricing at publicly accessible charging points is, for example, discussed by the German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt) in its final report of 1 October 2024 on its sector inquiry into EV charging infrastructure.

Outlook

Sufficient charging infrastructure is often seen as a bottleneck in the transition to EVs. In Germany, 2022 and 2023 were record years for the expansion of the charging network, even before the AFIR came into force. It remains to be seen if this trend continues, despite the end of some important public funding schemes for both EVs and charging infrastructure and the recent drop in EV sales in the EU more generally.