A robust EV charging metric (or two) that measures how well a community, state, or nation’s EV charging infrastructure meets EV owners’ needs is essential to the growth of EV adoption. After all, what use is an EV if you have to hunt all over town for a working charger?
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In a late 2021 study, the International Energy Agency (IEA) singled out two critical metrics that gauge the health of EV charging infrastructure in major nations. Its graph, “Charging points per EV and kW per electric LDV in selected countries,” shows that the United States is falling way behind even some of the world’s smallest nations in these key numbers.
To lead the world in the EV space, US EV charging companies must invest more in charging stations and the infrastructure that supports them. Learn more about these essential EV charging metrics and how to leverage them to benefit your EV infrastructure business – and a more sustainable future.
What’s So Critical About These Two Ratios?
The first ratio—the number of charge points for each EV in a given country—is an essential measurement of how much charging support EV owners will likely have as they travel across the nation. If a country lacks the infrastructure to provide adequate fuel for drivers, people will stop driving and eventually stop buying vehicles that need that type of fuel.
For now, that’s not the case with gas- or diesel-fueled cars. Although high fuel prices have discouraged drivers from taking as many trips as before the price hike, car buyers still purchase those vehicles.
The Charging Station-to-EV Ratio
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Have you ever thought about what would happen if gas stations suddenly became rare – few and far between? You can bet drivers wouldn’t be lining up to buy gas-powered cars, that’s for sure.
EV drivers across the United States face that kind of scenario every time they hit the road. Although the last few years have amped up EV charger installation, it remains a challenge for US EV drivers to find charging infrastructure, especially in more remote areas of the country. That hassle has driven other Americans away from considering an EV, as a recent article in The Hill points out.
For those of us passionate about EVs’ potential to clean up our air while providing a smooth driving experience, that’s a roadblock we need to overcome.
The kW-to-Electric LDV (Light-Duty Vehicle) Ratio
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As the IEA study shows, EV charging stations’ charging power (measured in kilowatts – kW) is also a critical ingredient in increasing the number of drivers choosing to buy EVs. The more power a charger has, the faster it can charge a car.
DC fast chargers’ capability directly addresses the “hassle” issue. Even more importantly, they quickly free up each charger to fuel another car, meaning they can charge more passenger cars in a day than their slower cousins. Even without more chargers, simply raising the kilowatt capacity with each charger installed can increase the number of vehicles that the nation’s EV infrastructure can serve.
But It’s a Catch-22 Situation, Isn’t It?
Building more EV charging infrastructure to support non-existent customers is not a catch-22.
While it’s true that a more recent IEA study shows that more EVs on the road can lead to a shortfall of chargers, it’s a short-sighted EV charging company that doesn’t build infrastructure ahead of EV production.
In Norway, for instance, the number of battery-powered EVs versus available charging stations soared from 1.3 in 2011 to a shocking 25 at the end of 2022.
If nothing changes, there will come a time when EV sales will drop if charging companies fail to provide EV owners with the infrastructure they need to power their cars. After all, as a Harvard Business Review piece points out, customer service is a critical ingredient in increasing sales.
If current customers experience low charger availability, you can bet they’ll tell their friends. At scale, this negative word-of-mouth can cause a drop in EV sales – and, consequently, sales of the chargers to fuel them.
But there’s good news as well. Those EV charging companies with the long-term vision to build for a rising trend of EV adoption will reap the long-term benefits of their foresight.
While US EV infrastructure companies have a long way to go to match China, Europe, and other major nations in installing Level 1 and 2 public chargers, they have increased the nation’s stock of these charging stations by 9%. In 2022, the United States increased its inventory of publicly available DC fast chargers from 6,300 to 28,000, a 344% increase.
That’s a start. If the installation percentages continue to soar across the US, as a recent PwC report shows, the total number of EV chargers could stand at 35 million by 2030. The report predicts that the rate of EV adoption will increase dramatically—to an estimated total of 27 million by the same year.
Let’s make PwC’s prediction come true.
Make the EV Adoption Dream Happen with the EV Charging Summit Team
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There’s one place in the US that can bring this dream of increasing EV adoption to life. That’s the EV Charging Summit & Expo – chock-full of experts from every aspect of the EV charging industry.
From the technology you need to build leading-edge charging stations to the marketing savvy you’ll need to sell new people on EV adoption (and why your station should be their top choice for charging their new cars), you’ll find it at one of our events. Reserve your spot at our next event today!
