The European regulation on the deployment of infrastructure for alternative fuels (AFIR) came into force in April 2024.
Published in the Official Journal of the European Union in September 2023, this regulation provides in particular for the deployment of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (IRVE), but also includes obligations for operators in terms of payment methods and transparency on pricing.
Establishment of a European charging network
As part of the AFIR, the installation of fast charging stations every 60 km to 100 km will finally become a reality. Moreover, ” heavy-duty vehicle charging stations with a minimum power of 350 kW must be deployed every 60 km along the TEN-T core network and every 100 km on the wider overall TEN-T network from 2025, for complete network coverage by 2030 », Specified the Council of the EU.
Integrating hydrogen recharging stations
The new European regulation also provides for the establishment of hydrogen refueling stations for cars and trucks from 2030. in all urban nodes and every 200 km along the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) “. However, the AFIR also provides for obligations concerning the deployment of charging points, in particular in terms of display and transparency of the charging price, but also of the means of payment.
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And more transparency on prices
In this logic, the prices charged by charging operators (CPO) must be “ reasonable, transparent and non-discriminatory » in order to be easily comparable for all users. In detail, this pricing information must specify the price per kWh, the price per minute or the price per session.
But also several payment solutions
The AFIR regulations also provide that charging points with a power of less than 50 kW, installed from April 13, 2024, have at least one of these three payment solutions: an electronic terminal usable via a bank card, a contactless reader or a device using an internet connection and allowing secure payments through a specific QR code.
