For those of us in the U.S., Europe’s strong electric vehicle market might offer a glimpse into the future of EV charging. In 2022, nearly 80% of new cars sold in Norway were EVs, which now make up around 21% of the country’s vehicle stock. Germany has Europe’s largest EV fleet and led the EU in the number of new EVs registered in 2022, landing at nearly 360,000, based on reporting by Euronews.
So it stands to reason that these countries must have insights into how to get all these vehicles charged. And Europe does indeed have a lot to teach the U.S. — but it turns out the lessons might actually go both ways.
In this episode, Shayle talks to Nick Woolley, CEO and co-founder of charging management company ev.energy, which operates in both the U.S. and Europe. (Shayle’s firm Energy Impact Partners is an investor in ev.energy.)
They discuss topics including:
- EV adoption rates and charging patterns by region.
- Europe’s fragmented charging networks and unique roaming programs that facilitate interoperability.
- The differences between customers who have off-street parking and their own charging infrastructure, and those who instead have to scavenge for charging.
- The pros and cons of Europe’s unbundled electricity markets compared with vertically integrated markets in the U.S.
- Carrots, sticks and compliance for managed or smart charging, also known as V1G.
- The challenges of implementing vehicle-to-grid charging (V2G).
