EU legislation for charging station network allows manufacturers to reduce battery sizes, EV prices and reduces carbon footprints

New legislation which requires EU members to create charging stations at 60km intervals along the trans-European network has the potential to significantly change the EV market.

High prices for EVs are driven by the cost of large batteries, with 50-60kWh packs becoming all too common - and unnecessary. 

Average European daily mileage is in the range of 30-50km something which would only demand a much smaller batter. However, buyer’s range anxiety prompts them to go for bigger packs than they would otherwise need for the infrequent occasions they might need to go on a longer journey.

The new network means that a car with a 200km range is extremely usable for longer journeys in the real world. A 15-20 minute charging stop every couple of hours is a realistic target for those longer journeys. Knowing that there is a reliable and ubiquitous network of chargers to call on during the journey should do much to end the climate anxiety that owners of EVs with smaller batteries might otherwise suffer.

Why is this important? Firstly because the battery is a huge component of the additional cost of an EV when compared to its internal combustion cousin. Making smaller EVs which sell at a more reasonable price allows more people to choose electric. Secondly, smaller batteries mean that the manufacturing carbon cost of a new EV can be much lower - important given the need to quickly recoup the carbon emissions to create a net positive effect sooner.

It will be a while before EV charging stations are as widely available as petrol refuelling, but as the world moves to ban combustion car sales over the next decade, it's inevitable that more and more fuel stations will transition to charging instead.