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It's easy to start with a quote for ten, twenty, or fifty charging stations. But the number doesn't mean much until you know how the parking lot is used.
At an office, many cars are parked for long periods and can be charged at moderate power levels during the workday. At retail locations, parking spaces need to be turned over more quickly. Service vehicles and company fleets may have fixed departure times and must be ready then, even if the property is experiencing a power peak at the same time. Furthermore, the same parking lot may be used by tenants during the day and by residents, staff, or visitors at other times.
So start by deciding what you’ll actually offer. Will charging be included in the rent, sold separately, or provided as a public service? Do different user groups need different access levels and prices? Should tenants be able to reserve spots? Who will provide assistance if the charging doesn’t start?
On the page about electric vehicle charging with Chargeflow, we describe the turnkey solution. Here, we focus on the decisions that need to be made before the equipment and construction contract are finalized.
Charging an electric vehicle costs more than the electricity itself. Equipment, design, installation, groundwork, power capacity, connection, payment services, maintenance, and administration are all part of the overall package. If those costs aren’t included in the calculation, it becomes difficult to set a price that will remain viable over time.
At the same time, the model should be simple for the user. The driver needs to be able to see the price before charging and understand the charges afterward. The property owner needs to be able to distinguish between electricity costs, revenue, usage, and operating costs.
The price per kWh is based on the energy supplied and is easy to explain. However, the price needs to cover more than just the cost of purchasing electricity.
A time-based fee may prompt drivers to move their cars once charging is complete. It works well where turnover is important, but can be frustrating if it is unclear when the fee begins to accrue or if the user lacks a reasonable alternative.
A fixed monthly fee provides a predictable cost for regular users. At the same time, two subscribers may use very different amounts of electricity. The model therefore requires clear terms and conditions and regular monitoring.
In many properties, a combination works best. Tenants may have a contract rate, while visitors pay a public rate. The key is that the model can be managed without manual lists and recurring adjustments between the property management system, the charging platform, and the accounting system.
A charging station is rarely fully utilized from day one. The calculation should therefore include a conservative scenario with low utilization, a scenario based on known demand, and one that indicates when the next expansion will be needed.
This makes a practical difference. With low usage, fixed costs are spread across a small number of charging sessions. With high usage, power charges, wait times, and support needs may increase. A single average masks both situations.
The user experience is most noticeable when someone is standing at the charger. The authentication process must work, the price must be visible, and the payment process must be easy to understand. When these elements fail, charging quickly becomes an issue for the front desk or the property manager.
Chargeflow is SBP’s solution for billing private and public charging stations. It includes a mobile app and a cloud-based charging service. Access rights, pricing, and monitoring can be managed within a single unified structure rather than through separate manual processes.
Private charging stations can be used by tenants, employees, or a vehicle fleet. Public charging stations are used by visitors, customers, and other drivers. These groups have different requirements regarding access, pricing information, and billing.
It is therefore wise to choose a platform that supports multiple groups within the same facility. This allows a parking lot to be opened to more users without having to replace the entire system. It also makes it easier to distinguish between internal charging and public sales in reporting.
Someone has to take action when a charging station loses connection, a user can’t get started, or a payment is disputed. If responsibilities haven’t been clearly defined, these issues often end up with a property manager, a receptionist, or the installer—even though they lack the necessary access and tools.
Before going live, determine who will handle the case, who can view the facility’s status, and who will resolve the issue. With SBP’s comprehensive responsibility, you’ll have a seamless point of contact from analysis and business planning through implementation, operation, monitoring, and optimization.
The number of charging points is only one aspect of the design. The property’s grid connection, other electricity usage, the length of time vehicles are parked, and power output requirements determine how much charging capacity can actually be provided.
A car that is parked for eight hours rarely needs the maximum possible power for the entire period. Dynamic load balancing can distribute the power among the cars and adjust charging based on the building’s other loads. This can reduce the need for a larger grid connection.
For a vehicle fleet, the priority may be different. Several vehicles may need to be fully charged by a specific time. In that case, the control system should take departure times and energy needs into account, rather than simply dividing the power equally.
Power costs and grid conditions vary from property to property. Use measurement data from the specific location. A solution that works in a neighboring property is not a sufficient basis for sizing.
Charging sometimes coincides with ventilation, cooling, production, or other high loads. If many cars are connected when the facility is already operating near its maximum capacity, the grid cost may be affected even if the total amount of energy seems reasonable.
This needs to be analyzed before the chargers are ordered. Sometimes control and time shifting are sufficient. In other cases, a larger connection, a different phasing, or clearer prioritization among the loads is required.
Demand is rarely fully known. This argues in favor of a phased expansion, rather than having to redesign the entire infrastructure for each new charging station.
Utility lines, substations, communications, and site layout can be planned with a larger-scale final configuration in mind, even when the initial phase is small. Groundwork is a concrete example. It often becomes unnecessarily expensive and disruptive to reopen the same area because the initial design only accounted for today’s chargers.
Also determine what triggers the next phase. It could be a certain occupancy rate, recurring lines, new lease agreements, or an expanded vehicle fleet. Clear thresholds turn the expansion into a planned decision rather than a reaction to complaints.
A phase may also need to be postponed. If network capacity is unclear, major groundwork is planned, or tenants’ needs have not yet been verified, it is better to resolve those issues than to install equipment that will sit unused or will soon have to be moved.
Electric vehicle charging should not be planned in isolation. Base load, ventilation, on-site solar power, batteries, and charging all collectively affect energy and power costs.
On-site solar power for commercial properties can contribute during parts of the charging period. Energy storage can be used in certain facilities to shift power or manage peaks. Whether this combination is appropriate depends on the consumption profile, grid contract, floor space, operational requirements, and economics.
Technical optimization is not always the organization’s top priority. A critical service vehicle may need to be charged even when the electricity is expensive. The control system must therefore comply with the organization’s rules while also providing a basis for financial monitoring.
Some property owners want to own the charging infrastructure and include the investment on their own balance sheet. Others prioritize allocating capital toward acquisitions, renovations, or their core business. In such cases, Energy-as-a-Service can be an alternative to a traditional investment.
A service agreement must be reviewed just as carefully as an in-house system. The contract term, price, liability, service level, data access, and terms for expansion must be clearly defined. The financing arrangement does not replace a well-thought-out user and capacity plan.
If local solar power generation is included, Energy-as-a-Service can reduce the initial capital commitment and centralize responsibility for the solution and its operation. A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) is relevant as a comparative model, but SBP does not offer PPAs as a standard arrangement. It must still be possible to track the charging service’s business model and the solar plant’s costs separately.
A charging service isn't complete once it goes live. Its use changes as tenants change, vehicle fleets grow, or prices are adjusted.
Track metrics such as energy delivered, charging sessions, utilization per charging point, availability, revenue, costs, power peaks, and support cases. For a vehicle fleet, the percentage of vehicles that are ready at their scheduled departure time is more important than a high average utilization rate.
Also consider practical friction. Are parking spots being blocked by fully charged cars? Do users understand the price? Is a certain group having trouble registering? Such signals should lead to decisions regarding eligibility, signage, pricing, support, or the next phase.
SBP has delivered over 250 commercial facilities in the Greentech sector since 2016. The references page features examples of solutions for various properties and businesses.
1. Identify the users. Document parking times, energy needs, departure times, access permissions, and the payment model.
2. Measure capacity. Analyze power consumption, grid connection, future loads, and limitations using actual measurement data.
3. Define the business terms and responsibilities. Finalize the pricing model, ownership, support, data access, and financial monitoring before placing the technology order.
4. Plan the phases. Install based on verified needs and prepare the infrastructure and agreements for the next step.
5. Monitor the service. Set key performance indicators and adjust them as usage or the energy system changes.
Base your planning on verified demand, parking duration, available power, and an expansion plan. A phased approach reduces the risk of both under- and over-sizing.
Billing can be based on kWh, per time unit, via a subscription, or a combination of these methods. Chargeflow supports billing for private and public charging stations.
No. Load balancing and smart control can distribute the existing power. However, the need must still be assessed based on the property’s metering data and the business’s requirements.
Yes, when the production profile, charging needs, electricity costs, and operating conditions align. Each property must be analyzed separately.
Energy-as-a-Service may be an option. Compare contract terms, liability, cost, data access, and scalability with owning your own infrastructure.
This should be specified in the operational plan. Before starting, determine who will receive the user, monitor the system, and be responsible for troubleshooting technical issues.
Would you like to assess demand, capacity, and the business model before investing? Contact SBP for a review of the property or portfolio.
We look forward to investigating how your property is suitable for green energy.
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