5 Easy Steps to Become a Charge Point Operator

Establishing an EV charging network doesn’t have to be complicated. In this article, we will guide you through this process step by step.

1. Plan Your Location

The visibility of charging facilities, ease of entry, and proximity to major roads are some of the main factors in your charge point’s success.

To make the most of your EV charging network:

Maximise accessibility. Plan the network in such a way that your charging stations are easy to enter and, if possible, close to the major roads. Pay attention to the fact that your charging facilities are present on both sides of a highway, so the EV driver doesn’t have to make a U-turn.
Maximise utilisation. Take into account that public charging demand at a given location will depend on multiple parameters such as population and employment densities, parking availability, traffic volumes, shopping mall availability in the area, transit stations, tourist destinations, and so on. If you have a low-traffic area in mind, it doesn’t seem efficient to establish a fast charging station.
Minimize cost. Plan your budget depending on three factors: the cost of EV supply equipment, the cost of land, and the cost of power supply. All three can be significantly reduced by opting for a distributed charging network of normal power charging points that are less expensive and require less space and electricity at any given location. If you opt for the highway area, though, it is valuable to install a fast charging station and invest more.

2. Choose the Right Hardware

On one hand, the fast-growing EV charging industry offers a diverse range of EV chargers. On the other hand, though, if the charger is not working or is malfunctioning, you are not generating money; instead, you are spending it on service and support. That’s why, it is by all means, important that you choose the right charging hardware.

By selecting the charger or station from a variety of tested OCPP-compliant charging stations, you will save money and time. At Electriqua, we’ve tested over 300 chargers, and we continue doing so. Check out Electriqua’s supported chargers to find the charger that perfectly fits your needs.

Here are key considerations for choosing the right charger while scanning through our supported chargers:

Choose chargers that can last for 10 years or more.
Be attentive with no-name vendors, as their chargers may, in most cases, have high degradation of electric elements. Furthermore, such chargers may not work well with the software you intend to install.
Consider the climate zone in your area (verify that the chargers have been tested for temperature variations, for example, in California, Egypt, Canada, and the Nordic countries).
Choose chargers made of resilient materials covered by high-quality paint. Avoid chargers with plastic body parts (these will soon be out of use because of high temperatures).
Try to limit the brands’ range to be able to use spare parts efficiently.

3. Select the Fitting Connector Types & Cables

The market fit regarding connector types & cables plays an essential role for your customers and, thus, will directly impact your income generation.

To choose the right connector types & cables:

Take into account your market needs and the EVs that are mostly used in your region.
Pay attention to imported cars, and make sure your station is equipped with fitting connectors.
Do not save money on cable. Since the high-quality cable is durable, it will reduce your operational expenses.
Avoid buying a charging station without a cable. The majority of EV drivers commute without a charging cable, so arriving at the station and discovering there is no charging cable available will, most probably, upset your customers. Moreover, the AFIR compliance presupposes that by April 15, 2025 the operators of public charging points shall provide all of their DC public points with fixed charging cable.
Make sure the cable is about 5 metres long. EVs have charging ports located in different places, so the length of the cable is of great importance.
If the walk side is an issue, installing the floor-mounted charger is better. The EV driver will more likely charge from the floor-mounted charger on the walk side rather than extending the cable from the wall through the walk side to the car.
Consider the chargers with additional features that best fit your location; for instance, the charger with cable hanging above possibility might be an optimal choice for a city centre area with limited floor availability, or the multi-media EV charger might optimise the user experience and bring additional economic benefits.

4. Reduce Electrical Losses

Remember the minimise-cost-approach discussed at the beginning of this article? Minimising the cost of power supply is essential, as it is the cost that will be carried by either the CPO or, even worse, the driver.

To reduce electrical losses, do the following:

Use high-quality wires and cables with high-performance alloys.
Choose an optimal cable diameter to reduce the linear resistance of electricity.
Connect the cables using the correct soldering methods or special pads.

5. Choose the EV Charging Management Platform That Suits Your Business Needs

If you plan to establish a charging station at a retail/coffee shop or hotel you will need certain features to make your business effective, so you:

Can offer your customers a variety of charging options (even without the need to open the app) and payment options.
Are able to remotely manage your charging stations.

Can attract more customers with such features as charging spot reservation and charge point availability forecast.
Comply with local regulations.
Comply with AFIR (Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure) starting from April 13, 2024, according to which Polish CPOs should provide safe and secure parking and ad hoc payment options (for instance, payment card readers,devices with a contactless functionality that are at least able to read payment cards, devices using an Internet connection enabling secure payments, e.g., QR) for EV drivers, so they can charge their EVs without the need to register, conclude a written agreement, or enter into a longer-lasting commercial relationship with the operator.

In case you are about to administer the Home Owner Association, following set of features will help you to:

Remotely manage your stations via a simplified UI for condominiums.
Receive payments via a Google/Apple Pay, credit/debit card or one of the local payment methods be it Blik, Giropay, Payconiq, Mollie.
Control parking spots with such features as charging spot reservation and parking fee.
Offer free charging for closed groups.
Comply with local regulations.

If you are the hardware vendor, Electriqua’s feature set for hardware vendors allows you to:

Gather hardware-specific and CPO-specific reports.
Receive, store, and visualise telemetry parameters.
Comply with local regulations.