The price of EV charging: Look beyond the headlines

Be.EV’s Adrian Fielden-Gray asks public to understand what is driving the cost of EV charging

Despite a fall in wholesale energy prices the cost of charging an electric vehicle (EV) using public rapid and ultra-rapid chargers remains stubbornly high, new data from RAC Charge Watch shows.

There is unhelpful hysteria around the cost of charging an EV ignoring the real reasons behind pricing – including factors largely beyond chargepoint operators’ (CPOs) control.

The RAC correctly points out that electricity accounts for only a fraction of the total cost, but it’s also worth noting that CPOs often enter fixed contracts so we’re not paying 50p per kWh one month and then 9p per kWh the next. We enter fixed price contracts, which is a good thing for customers as gives price certainty rather than passing on volatility.

Additionally, the cost of the kit is very high. If a home user spends £1,000 on installing a home charger, that’s an upfront cost which they don’t equate to an extra, say, 20p/kWh on their normal tariff but that is what happens when fronting the upfront cost in public charging.

I urge the public to look beyond the headlines and consider the challenges we face in enabling the UK’s green transport transition.

CPOs are taking substantial financial risks to support EV adoption, committing £6 billion to develop a charging network driver want at a time when EVs account for just 3% of vehicles on the road.

Public EV charging prices reflect the realities of building a reliable, future-proof network—not profiteering.

Adrian Fielden-Gray is co-founder of Be.EV