Public charging may not be as important as is commonly believed, with it accounting for a predicted 8% of all charging over the next 3-10 years, according to latest research by Delta-ee.

Public charging may only account for 8% of charging

The research found public charge points may only account for 8% of charging over the next 3-10 years. The research draws on extensive surveys to profile the next wave of (UK) EV drivers – the early adopters – who behave very differently to today’s ‘innovators’. Of these, 85% will have off-street parking and 50% will use their car for commuting.

Public charging infrastructure is expected to be important for addressing range anxiety, but will account for a small portion of total charging, the company found.

Within the early adopters, three distinct segments were identified:

• Suburban commuters (the largest segment): charge at home and work, will seek a deal that fits with their regular schedule.
• Mix-and-matchers: urban movers looking for the best deal. Happy to use public chargers and latest tech to find the best deal.
• Home dwellers (the smallest segment): rural-suburban homeowners who are financially secure. Tend to be older and retired, not particularly tech savvy.

Matti Kahola, senior analyst at Delta-ee, said: “Electricity network operators will need to understand when, how and where different groups are going to be charging in order to manage demand on the grid. Then you have the brewing battle to capture the market for EV-related services. Winning that will require building new business models and propositions around different types of customers. Will we see companies selling mobility, not cars; kilometres rather than kilowatts?”