3.1 Demand on the system and expansion of EV charging

3.1 Demand on the system and expansion of EV charging

The widespread use of electric vehicles will place more pressure than ever on Ireland’s electricity network. Nonetheless, this is a challenge that must be faced in order to meet our country’s climate goals. In-depth planning will be needed as well as detailed consultation with energy providers and network operators. However, a range of smart technological advancements will also play a part in making sure the grid can cope with the surge in charging demand.

Current Charging Network

where up to 42% of citizens do not have the facility to access a home charger39.

With a charging network of approximately 1,700 publicly-available charge points36, Ireland is currently behind the EU average in infrastructure provision. Across the EU, there is an average of 73 charging points per 100,000 inhabitants. However, this is very unevenly distributed and only 8 countries surpass this ratio: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Sweden37.

Based on the rapidly-growing number of EVs in Ireland, we are also behind EU averages when looking at the number of EVs per charge point installed. However, there are other valid ways to compare. The gap is narrower, for example, when comparing the number of EVs per DC rapid charge point (>50 kW). The European average is 147, while in Ireland we have 207 EVs per DC rapid charge point (>50 kW).

Figure 1: Public charge points and electric vehicles licensed in Ireland per 100,000 of population38

Ireland has a range of unique geographical and socioeconomic characteristics. These characteristics frame both the challenges and opportunities of improving our charging network. They include:

Figure 1: Public charge points and electric vehicles

MRelatively short distances between major

Irish cities and towns, and a relatively short geographical distance on the island;

MA temperate climate;

MA high amount of and potential for renewable

electricity;

MA high percentage of homes with driveways.

Overall, these factors make Ireland an ideal location for successful widespread use of electric vehicle technology.

While it is important to benchmark ourselves against other markets, it is also key to fully understand Ireland’s specific circumstances. They must be considered when forecasting and planning for future public charging needs.

Part of the reason for Ireland having fewer charge points in comparison to the European average is likely to be the greater access to home charging solutions in Ireland than across Europe,

36 European Alternative Fuels Observatory/Ireland/Infrastructure (September 22)

37 ChargeUp Europe, State of the Industry Insights into the Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Ecosystem

38 European Alternative Fuels Observatory. Battery Electric Vehicles or BEVs licensed, last update 30 Sept 2022.

39 McKinsey Article: Europe’s EV opportunity—and the charging infrastructure needed to meet it

The Scale of the Charging Network Required by 2025

BEVs/PHEVs (1 kW of charging per BEV and 0.66 kW per PHEV). This is to incentivise the uptake of light-duty electric vehicles.

The coming decade will present the significant challenge of delivering sufficient EV charging infrastructure to meet emerging demands. This must be done in a manner that is safe, resilient, equitable, and sustainable.

2. A minimum coverage of publicly-accessible charging points (dedicated to light-duty vehicles) is in place on the national motorway network by the end of 2025. For example, charging pools with over 300 kW charging capacity, including an ultra-rapid (over 150 kW) charger, will be required at least on the Ten-T Core Network, every 60 km in each direction.

As well as Government action to increase the investment in the EV Charging network (with €100m pledged over the three years to 2025), the EU Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) will increase the ambition of EV charging provision in Ireland. The AFIR is currently being negotiated at EU level and expected to come into force in 2023.

3. A minimum coverage of publicly-accessible charging points (dedicated to heavy goods vehicles) is in place by the end of 2025. For example, charging pools with a total capacity of 1400 kW every 120 km on 15% of the TEN-T Network, with at least one charger sized 350 kW (minimum of 8 such charging pools).

The EU, through the AFIR, will require a minimum deployment of public charging infrastructure to be established for each state in the EU. Member States are expected to be mandated by law40 to ensure that, at least:

4. Each urban node (Irish examples being Dublin, Cork, and Shannon) has a 600 kW charging pool for HGVs, with at least one charger of 150 kW in each pool. These pools must be in place by the end of 2025.

5. Publicly-accessible charging stations are deployed, commensurate to the number of

Figure from page 29

40 The Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR). The regulation is currently under negotiation. The European Council proposal: https://www. consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2022/06/02/fit-for-55-package-council-adopts-its-position-on-three-texts-relating-to-the-transportsector/ & European Parliament proposal: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2022-0368_EN.html The criteria above are the minimum standards called for in each of the three positions; by the Council, the Commission or Parliament. If the trialogue negotiations finalise on a higher requirement, ZEVI will adjust the figures upwards.

a different number of residential/neighbourhood charge points and destination/en-route charge points, each combination delivers the same total charging power. This is because of the difference in charging power offered by each category of chargers. Larger, ultra-fast chargers (with 350 kW power), that could be based in en-route charging stations, provide almost 50 times the charging power of a neighbourhood 7 kW charger. Between now and 2025, scenarios 2, 3, or 4 are the most likely.

Using these guidelines will result in a range of estimates for the amount of publicly-accessible charge points needed by 2025.

By 2025 Ireland is expected to have 195,000 light-duty electric vehicles. The ambition of this strategy is focused on delivering the infrastructure to meet and be ahead of Ireland’s charging needs. The first AFIR criteria above would require Ireland to have approximately 169,000 kW of charging power across the country. This strategy aims to deliver at least the AFIR requirement. The distribution of the different types of charge-point offerings will be designed based on user needs. As outlined in Table 1, the number of charge points could increase from approximately 1700 in September 2022 to somewhere between 2540 and 4850 by 2025.

The number of publicly-accessible chargers required under AFIR depends on several factors such as:

MEV uptake in the years to 2025;

MThe level of BEV uptake versus PHEV uptake;

MThe mix of slow/fast/rapid/ultra-fast chargers.

This will be driven by the charging behaviour of users and the availability of new technologies that enable faster charging.

The key target will be to deliver the overall power required with an optimal mix of charger types to address the three categories of need: residential/ neighbourhood charging, destination charging, and en-route charging.

Although home and workplace charging will remain dominant in Ireland, it is likely that demand for higher-speed, publicly-accessible

As seen from Table 1, while each scenario shows

Table 1: Charge Point Rollout Scenarios

	Residential/ Neighbourhood 0-22 kW	Destination/ En-Route 23 kW-350 kW	Total Number of Publicly- Accessible Chargers Nationwide	Total Charging Power Nationwide (kW)
Existing	1,349	374	1,723	67,237
Scenario 1	1,460	1,080	2,540	169,000
Scenario 2	1,650	1,300	2,950	169,000
Scenario 3	1,990	1,320	3,310	169,000
Scenario 4	2,660	1,180	3,840	169,000
Scenario 5	4,070	780	4,850	169,000