As governments worldwide set ambitious goals for phasing out gas-powered vehicles, opportunities for electric vehicle charging stations are exploding. Cellular IoT connectivity is the key to this tremendous growth opportunity.
Last year, Ericsson issued its Connected EV charging report based on a joint study with Arthur D. Little, in collaboration with Blue Corner, a European EV charging station company, and Orange Belgium, Blue Corner’s internet service provider. They found an impressive and exciting increase in value for EV charging stations in two specific areas: greater revenue because of interoperability, and lower costs because of remote monitoring. Highlights from the report are:
- There was a 40% increase in annual revenue share because cellular IoT connectivity makes interoperability a reality: customers can easily and efficiently use charging stations operated by different companies. User profiles, payment methods, and authorization are streamlined, so customers don’t have to register as a new user at each new charging point.
- With Cellular connectivity, there was a 15% annual reduction in monitoring costs because maintenance and other service issues could be addressed remotely, quickly, and efficiently. Site visits for diagnostics and maintenance are reduced, also lessening a company’s overall carbon footprint. Potential issues regarding hardware and other aspects are communicated to the charging company even before customers notice, reducing time stations are offline for repairs (and losing revenue in the process).
- Other stakeholders in the EV charging space also benefit. Parking operators, for example, saw a 1.6% revenue increase in the study.
In addition to these study findings, cellular IoT connectivity at EV charging points is extremely secure, protecting delicate information such as customers’ user profiles and payment information. Because of the reliability of cellular connectivity, EV drivers can also rest assured that even when they’re in rural settings, they can recharge their vehicles.
Connecting charging stations with cellular IoT can have a significant business impact for EV charging companies. Annually, cellular IoT can help EV charging providers raise their revenues up to 40% with interoperability and save 15% in monitoring costs. Other stakeholders in the EV charging space, such as parking operators, can also expect to see increases in revenue. Interoperable services make it simpler for drivers to charge their vehicles at charging locations owned by various companies. Cellular IoT connectivity leads to more efficient operations, makes maintenance easier, and results in higher customer satisfaction. It is also reliable and secure. In addition, scalability for EV charge point operators is assured when built upon the many benefits of cellular connectivity.
Cellular IoT connections among all industries are expected to grow from 1.9 billion in 2022 to 5.5 billion in 2027, a 19% compounded annual growth rate (CAGR), and much of this growth will occur in the burgeoning EV charging space.
