has·to·be: Over 200,000 charging points in the European roaming network

The Austrian charging network and infrastructure specialist has·to·be has reached an important milestone by the end of 2020, now offering its B2B customers access to 200,000 charging points in Europe. This corresponds to 90 percent of the 225,000 charging slots, the provider advertises. "By 2030, every second car should be an electric car according to the EU's climate goals and CO2 fleet limits, and the necessary charging infrastructure must grow accordingly," the software specialists outline. They also criticize that the current European charging infrastructure is concentrated in four countries: the Netherlands, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.

"The offered charging infrastructure in Scandinavia, Denmark, and Switzerland is on a good path. It becomes challenging when looking at the southern and eastern European countries; we are currently at the beginning of building the charging infrastructure there," analyzes Martin Klässner, CEO of has·to·be gmbh.

However, work is being done to further develop long-distance capable e-mobility for everyone in these parts of Europe as well. Klässner expects "a few more years of intensive work" before the charging network can be comprehensively expanded and offered especially in Eastern Europe. He sees interoperability as one of the key factors for customer acceptance. For Klässner, the topics of interoperability, easy charging, and positive customer experiences are closely linked.

"E-mobility providers should be able to ensure that e-car drivers can charge conveniently in the respective foreign countries without having to immediately sign contracts with local providers. Just as we know it from mobile phone use abroad," Klässner demands.

He refers to his company's system called eMSP.Operation, which makes the 200,000 charging points accessible with just one charging card without individual roaming contracts or billing with individual charging station operators. Business customers also benefit from transparent collective invoices, favorable rates, and standardized processes while complying with financial, legal, and statutory regulations, the CEO continues to promote.

“I hope that we can announce the next milestone in the near future,” Klässner announces. "That would then be access to 100 percent of the public charging infrastructure in Europe within our roaming network."