Electric Vehicle Charging Stations: The Complete Guide to Understanding, Deploying, and Maintaining an IRVE Fleet

In a few years, electric vehicle charging has moved from being a technological curiosity to an essential infrastructure. According to Avere-France, France had more than 154,700 public charging points open by the end of 2024, with a target of 400,000 by 2030. Behind each charging station lies a complete ecosystem: operators, maintainers, local authorities, energy providers. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the subject, from the technical aspects to on-site maintenance.

Before diving into the details: if you manage a kiosk park or oversee the maintenance of an IRVE network, you'll find here a regulatory overview, a comparison of major players, and a practical method for choosing a maintenance provider. All this without beating around the bush, with up-to-date figures and field experience.

Introduction to electric vehicle charging stations: what you really need to know

The electric vehicle charging encompasses a set of equipment and services that allow transferring electricity from the grid to a vehicle's battery. Behind this somewhat catch-all term, there is actually a great diversity of hardware, power levels, and protocols. And that's where many projects go off track: people confuse the reinforced socket of a garage with a highway fast charging station, while these two objects have almost nothing in common.

What is an electric vehicle charging station?

A charging station, or IRVE (Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure), is a fixed electrical equipment designed to supply a vehicle with energy. It consists of at least a connection point, an electrical protection system, and a control electronics that communicates with the vehicle. On recent models, you also find a communication module, a MID-certified energy meter, and sometimes an RFID reader.

In practice, a charging station does not simply send electricity. It negotiates with the vehicle the maximum power it can handle, checks the earth continuity, measures current leaks, and instantly cuts off in case of any anomaly. On paper, this seems trivial, but in practice, it's a small industrial computer.

What are the different types of charging stations?

Four major families are generally distinguished, which it is important to know in order not to select the wrong equipment:

• Reinforced domestic socket (Green'Up type by Legrand): approximately 3.2 kW, single connection, ideal for night use.
• The residential wallbox : 3.7 to 22 kW AC, wall-mounted, this is the standard solution for private individuals and small businesses.
• Accelerated AC socket : 7.4 to 22 kW, column or pedestal format, deployed on public parking lots, supermarkets, roadways.
• DC Fast Charger : from 50 to 400 kW (up to 600 kW for ultra-fast chargers), mostly CCS2 connector, available on motorways and dedicated stations.

To give you an idea, charging a Renault Mégane E-Tech (60 kWh usable) will take approximately 16 hours on a reinforced socket, 3 hours on a 22 kW wallbox (if the car accepts three-phase charging), and a little over 30 minutes on a 130 kW fast charger. Since the charging curve is never linear, these durations are indicative.

How does a charging station work in practice?

The technical principle is based on the charging modes defined by the IEC 61851 standard. Mode 3, which equips the majority of public AC charging stations, uses the Pilot (PWM) communication protocol between the station and the vehicle. For DC fast charging, it is Mode 4, with more advanced digital communication via PLC (Power Line Communication) and the ISO 15118 standard.

On the backoffice side, most public charging stations communicate via OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol), an open protocol that allows any compatible station to communicate with any monitoring platform. The OCPP 2.0.1 version is beginning to become more widespread, but the installed base remains mostly on OCPP 1.6J. This interoperability is crucial for operators of heterogeneous charging park.

What connectors are used in Europe?

Europe has aligned its standards, which makes the market a bit easier to read:

• Type 2 (Mennekes) : the European AC standard, present on all cars sold in the EU.
• CCS Combo 2 : the European DC standard, which adds two power pins under the Type 2.
• CHAdeMO : still present, but on the way out in terms of vehicles.
• NACS (ex-Tesla) : adopted in North America, but marginal in Europe where Tesla uses CCS2.

On site, operators now almost systematically install CCS2 sockets, sometimes with a secondary CHAdeMO socket to preserve compatibility with older vehicles. The Type 2 socket remains the standard for public AC charging.

What are the typical uses of a charging point?

Identifying use cases allows for proper project sizing. We often refer to four use cases:

1. Home charging : 80 % of volume recharges according to Enedis, in wallbox 7,4 or 11 kW, at night.
2. Workplace Charging : between 7 and 22 kW, long cable, ideal for smoothing demand on the grid.
3. Destination recharge : shopping mall parking, hotel, restaurant, where consumption and other activities are combined.
4. Roaming Recharge : highway axes, dedicated stations, power ≥ 100 kW to minimize downtime.

By the way, a common mistake is to want to install fast chargers everywhere. In a municipal parking lot, where cars park for 3 hours, a 22 kW AC charger is more than sufficient and costs five to ten times less than a 50 kW DC charger. Feedback shows that overdimensioning is one of the main causes of poor profitability of a public charging park.

Bidirectional Charging and V2G: Fad or Real Revolution?

Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G), where the vehicle sends energy back to the grid, is generating a lot of discussion. However, deployment remains marginal in 2026, due to the lack of finalized standardization (ISO 15118-20) and a clear pricing framework. A few serious experiments exist, notably in Île-de-France with EDF and Renault, but widespread adoption is not imminent. Worth monitoring, but without rushing.

How many charging stations are there in France?

According to the Avere-France barometer from January 2025, France had 154,694 public charging points open, representing an increase of more than 30% in one year. The average density reaches about 230 points per 100,000 inhabitants, with significant territorial disparities: Hauts-de-France and Occitanie are better equipped than Corsica, for example. The symbolic threshold of 100,000 points was crossed in May 2023 (18 months late compared to the initial PFA target).

On the private side, it is estimated that more than 1.2 million charging points have been installed in residential and tertiary sectors, which changes the scale of the subject: electric vehicle charging is not limited to the public fleet, far from it.

Regulations and Standards for Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

The regulatory framework is dense, sometimes shifting, and it must be mastered to avoid unpleasant surprises. Between electrical standards, professional qualifications, accessibility obligations, and the European AFIR regulation, an IRVE project involves the responsibility of several stakeholders. Here are the main references to know.

What are the applicable electrical standards for charging stations?

Several texts structure the design and installation of a kiosk:

• NF C 15-100 : the general standard for low-voltage electrical installations, which includes a specific part for IRVE.
• NF C 15-722 : standard dedicated to IRVE installations in residential and tertiary sectors, published in 2018, then updated.
• NF C 17-200 : for public lighting installations and their related equipment, sometimes used for street furniture.
• NF EN 61851-1 to -23 : the international series defining charging modes, safety requirements and tests.
• NF EN 62196 : which describes the connectors and sockets (Type 2, CCS, etc.).
• NF EN IEC 61439-7 : for equipment assemblies intended for IRVE.

In practice, these standards require, for example, a residual differential device (RCD) of type A or F associated with protection against continuous fault currents, a disconnection cutting all active conductors, and overvoltage protection adapted to the environment.

The IRVE qualification: who can install a charging station?

Decree No. 2017-26 of January 12, 2017, as amended, requires that a power outlet exceeding 3.7 kW be installed by a qualified professional. The IRVE qualification is issued by two main organizations: Qualifelec and AFNOR Certification. It is divided into three levels:

• Level 1 (P1) : installation of sockets ≤ 22 kW without specific configuration.
• Level 2 (P2) : terminals with configuration, communication and supervision.
• Level 3 (P3) : fast DC charging ports.

For public access points, level P2 is generally required. For the rapid DC, P3 is mandatory. On site, there are still installations made by unqualified electricians, but this exposes both the project owner and the installer in case of an incident, and closes access to ADVENIR subsidies.

The AFIR Regulation: What is changing in Europe?

The European regulation 2023/1804 (AFIR), applicable since April 13, 2024, replaces the previous AFI directive. It imposes binding obligations on Member States, including:

• At least 1.3 kW of installed public power per electric vehicle in circulation.
• A fast charging station (≥ 150 kW) every 60 km on the RTE-T central network by the end of 2025.
• Contactless card payment mandatory for all stations ≥ 50 kW installed from April 2024.
• Transparent display of the price per kWh and in local currency, without the need to subscribe to a subscription.
• A unique European identifier for each charging point.

The obligation to support contactless CB payments has been a real earthquake for the traditional operators, who had favored proprietary RFID cards. Many had to retrofit their terminals in a hurry or give up on commissioning new points.

The LOM Act and the obligation to pre-equip

The Law on Mobility Orientation (LOM) of December 24, 2019, introduced several major obligations:

• Pre-wiring of new parking lots : since March 11, 2021, any new residential or tertiary building parking lot with more than 10 spaces must include conduits and power supplies for charging.
• Minimum equipment as of January 1, 2025 for tertiary parking lots with more than 20 spaces: at least 2 % of spaces equipped with a charging point, with a PMR socket.
• Enhanced Right to Installation in co-ownership: a co-owner or tenant can have a charging point installed at their own expense without prior approval from the AG, with shortened deadlines.

These provisions have significantly accelerated the rollout in the tertiary sector between 2022 and 2025, sometimes with a certain amount of improvisation on the part of the client.

What is the ADVENIR program?

The ADVENIR program, managed by Avere-France and funded through Energy Saving Certificates (CEE), has subsidized the installation of charging points since 2016. Several channels coexist, with reimbursement rates ranging from 30 to 60% of the material and installation costs. The program has been extended until 2027, with specific funding envelopes for road infrastructure, co-ownerships, retrofitting, and more recently, heavy goods vehicle charging stations.

To benefit from ADVENIR, the installation must meet specific requirements: IRVE qualification, AFIREV-compatible supervision, access to certified personnel for eligible terminals, and a multi-year maintenance commitment. Using an ADVENIR-certified installer is mandatory. Feedback shows that the quality of applications has significantly improved since 2022.

What are the oversight and interoperability obligations?

The AFIREV (French Association for Electric Vehicle Charging Itinerancy) plays a central role in interoperability. It manages the national register of identifiers (e-MI3 ID) and publishes technical recommendations for supervision and roaming. For a driver equipped with an X badge to recharge at a Y operator's station, a roaming agreement between the two parties is required, generally through a hub platform (Gireve, e-clearing.net, Hubject).

On the supervision side, the OCPI (Open Charge Point Interface) standard prevails for exchanges between operators, while OCPP remains the standard between the charging station and the backoffice of its operator. The OCPP 2.0.1 version brings valuable features: fine billing management, advanced smart charging, ISO 15118 plug & charge. However, its deployment remains slow across the installed base.

Accessibility for people with reduced mobility and obligations for public kiosks

Publicly accessible kiosks must comply with accessibility rules for people with reduced mobility (modified decree of December 8, 2014). This includes, in particular:

• At least one PMR-accessible kiosk per station, with a 3.30 m wide space.
• A working height between 0.90 m and 1.30 m.
• A practicable path, with no step higher than 2 cm.
• A visual and tactile signage adapted.

On site, these rules are regularly circumvented (too high curbs, access blocked by a post, missing signage). Associations of people with disabilities have multiplied their appeals, and inspections are becoming stricter.

And legal metrology? The role of the MID meter

To bill energy consumption in kWh, the charging station must include a meter compliant with the MID (Measuring Instruments Directive, 2014/32/UE) directive. This requirement, long ignored by some operators who billed based on charging time, is now unavoidable since the implementation of AFIR. The 2018 metrology decree and the position of the DGCCRF have confirmed: no MID meter, no legal kWh billing.

By the way, in practice, the entire chain must be certified: sensor, transmission, display. A MID meter connected behind a non-compliant converter is not sufficient. This has pushed manufacturers to revise their internal architectures, sometimes deeply.

Key Actors and Providers of Electric Vehicle Charging Stations: Top 10

The French market for electric vehicle charging has become highly competitive, with a dozen major operators vying for public and private contracts. Here is an overview of the key players, classified according to their territorial footprint and deployment dynamics.

1. TotalEnergies Charging Solutions

Present both on traditional gas stations, in urban roadworks, and on motorway travel lanes, TotalEnergies is one of the largest French operators. The group operates several thousand charging points, a significant portion of which are fast chargers. Its network is based on a mix of ABB, Tritium, and Kempower charging stations. In terms of supervision, the backoffice is developed internally, with a deep integration into the Total CRM and the TotalEnergies Services EV Charge application.

2. Izivia (EDF Group)

100% EDF subsidiary, Izivia operates the historical Corri-Door network on motorways, as well as numerous urban and residential concessions. The group has heavily invested in modernizing its rapid transit fleet between 2022 and 2024, following a period of notable technical fragility. Izivia also offers turnkey solutions for businesses and local authorities, with an internal maintenance team and regional partnerships.

3. Engie Vianeo and Engie Solutions

Engie is entering the market from two fronts. Vianeo targets fast charging on the go, with multi-port stations located at highway exits. Engie Solutions, on the other hand, operates in the B2B and public sector, focusing on customized projects. The group announced in 2023 a deployment plan for over 12,000 charging points over five years, making it one of the most credible challengers. On the ground, coordination between the two entities can sometimes lack smoothness.

4. Electra

Pure-player in ultra-fast charging, founded in 2021, Electra has experienced rapid growth with over 200 stations opened in France and Europe by the end of 2024. The positioning is clear: exclusively high-power DC (≥ 150 kW), reservation possible via app, direct credit card payment, well-designed stations. The company has raised over 300 million euros, giving it the means to achieve its ambitions.

5. Allegro

Listed Dutch actor, Allego operates more than 35,000 charging points in Europe, a significant portion in France. Present on highways via the Mega-E network and on numerous shopping mall parking lots, Allego has the particularity of managing on behalf of third parties (CPO and eMSP). The technical reliability of the fleet has clearly improved since 2022, after difficult years.

6. Fastned

Another Dutch player, Fastned, stands out with its stations covered by yellow solar canopies, a strong visual identity. The French rollout remains more modest than in the Netherlands or Germany, but the company continues to open stations along key corridors. The network's reliability is regularly praised by users, with availability rates exceeding 98%.

7. Ionity

Joint venture created in 2017 by BMW, Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and later Hyundai, Ionity operates an exclusively ultra-fast European network (350 kW max) along motorway corridors. The French coverage is now almost complete on major routes. Pricing, long considered prohibitive for non-subscribers, has been relaxed in 2023.

8. Power Dot

Originally from Portugal, Power Dot has quickly established itself as a key player in destination charging in France, in partnership with retailers such as McDonald's, Carrefour, or Système U. The business model is based on revenue sharing with the landowner, with full management by Power Dot (CAPEX, OPEX, supervision). It is a good option for a site that does not want to become an operator.

9. Driveco

Pioneer of solar charging in France (the historic brand comes from Corsica), Driveco has developed on the shopping centers and mass retail segment. The company has installed several thousand charging points, often associated with photovoltaic canopies. The promise of decarbonized charging is highlighted, with installations that combine local production and grid connection.

10. Bump

Bump specifically targets corporate fleets and co-ownerships, with a turnkey model: study, financing, installation, operation, maintenance. Founded in 2020, the company claims to have deployed more than 8,000 charging points. Its proprietary backoffice allows for fine-grained management of access and re-billing, which appeals to park managers.

And what about the pure maintenance actors?

Alongside the charging station operators (CPO), there exists an entire ecosystem of specialized or generalist maintainers who work on the stations, sometimes on behalf of multiple CPOs. Among them:

• Spie CityNetworks : strong presence in public lighting and IRVE, with framework agreements in several metropolitan areas.
• Eiffage Énergie Systèmes : numerous maintenance contracts on highways and tertiary sectors.
• Vinci Energies (Cegelec, Omexom) : present on major projects, with national coverage.
• Bouygues Energies & Services : well established in local government, notably through public lighting contracts.
• ZE-Watt, Mobilize Power Solutions, Last Mile Solutions : more specialized actors or manufacturer spin-offs.

These companies often manage heterogeneous parks, which poses a real operational challenge: multiplicity of manufacturers (Schneider, Legrand, Hager, ABB, Wallbox, EVlink, Atess, Alfen, etc.), supervision protocols, spare parts inventory. Field intervention management becomes a subject in its own right, and it is precisely there that an application like KARTES takes on its full meaning.

How to choose a maintenance provider for electric vehicle charging stations

Choosing a maintainer for your IRVE fleet is not trivial. The maintenance cost of a kiosk can represent between 5% and 15% of the initial investment each year according to market feedback, and a poor choice results in reduced availability rates, revenue losses, and a damaged image among users. Here is a structured method to avoid mistakes.

What are the possible types of maintenance contracts?

We mainly encounter three families of contracts on the market:

• Simple preventive maintenance : periodic visits (generally annual), electrical checks, firmware update, cleaning. Good foundation, but insufficient on its own.
• Preventive and corrective maintenance : addition of intervention in case of breakdown, with a guaranteed deadline (GTI/GTR)
• The global contract (full service) : full coverage including spare parts, partial vandalism, 24/7 supervision, monthly reporting. It is the most expensive solution but the most budget predictable.

The choice depends on the criticality of the fleet. For streetlights in a metropolitan area, where each failure is reported by citizens, full service is mandatory. For a corporate fleet used by 30 service vehicles, a standard preventive/corrective contract is often sufficient.

What technical criteria to evaluate in a maintainer?

Beyond the listed price, several technical aspects make all the difference:

1. IRVE technician qualification : check the level (P1, P2 or P3) and its adequacy with your fleet. Without P3, no serious intervention on DC.
2. Electrical authorizations : B2V ESSAIS minimum, ideally BR/BC according to the operations. For high voltage terminals, specific authorizations are required.
3. Actual geographic coverage : a service provider with a single team based 200 km away from your site will not be able to support a 4-hour GTI.
4. Spares stock : payment modules, contactors, communication housings. Without stock, the intervention is delayed by several weeks.
5. Specialized tools: EV multimeter, vehicle simulator (EV-tester), DC insulation analyzer. Many classical electricians are lacking these.
6. Access to manufacturer backoffices : for firmware updates or remote configuration, certain operations require a manufacturer account.

A pre-site audit, including a visit to the agency and meeting with technicians, is worth more than all the nice commercial speeches. Feedback shows that unpleasant surprises are revealed by looking at the intervention vehicles and the workshop organization.

What performance indicators to require in the contract?

A good maintenance contract is measured by its KPIs. Here are the essential indicators to require:

Indicator	Recommended Target	Measure
Availability rate (uptime)	≥ 97 % AC, ≥ 95 % DC	Monthly, by kiosk and by site
GTI (Guarantee Time to Intervention)	4 a.m. to 8 a.m. business hours according to criticality	On site after ticket opening
GTR (Guaranteed Time to Recovery)	24 h to 72 h according to criticality	Full service restoration
First-time resolution rate	≥ 80 %	No technician return
Reporting Deadline	≤ 5 days after end of month	Structured Report
Tracking of interventions	100 % traceable	Dedicated platform

Watch out for the classic trap: an annual uptime of 97% may look impressive on paper, but it allows for more than 10 days of downtime per terminal per year. On a fleet of 100 terminals, that's more than 1,000 terminal-days of unavailability per year. The granularity of measurement is just as important as the threshold.

Should a national or local maintainer be preferred?

The question comes up systematically, and the answer depends on the nature of the fleet:

• For a geographically concentrated park (a city, a metropolitan area), a well-equipped local mainteneur will be more responsive and often less expensive.
• For an extended multi-site park (hotel chain, retail), a national mainteneur with a dense network offers the advantage of a single contract and service consistency.
• For a mixed park, a hybrid approach can work: a national main maintainer and qualified local subcontractors.

By the way, in practice, it is observed that the best availability rates are achieved with well-equipped local teams, supervised by a central pilot who consolidates the indicators. The fully centralized national approach quickly reveals its limitations in terms of responsiveness.

How to check the financial stability of the service provider?

A maintainer who leaves mid-contract causes several months of disorganization, out-of-service beacons, and sometimes a loss of spare parts. A few common-sense checks:

• Request the last three published balance sheets.
• Check the number of employees and its evolution.
• Consult supplier and customer reviews already under contract.
• Ensure coverage under professional liability insurance (≥ 5 M€ recommended for public kiosks).
• Request up-to-date URSSAF and tax certificates.

For public tenders, the DUME and application documents cover part of these points. For the private sector, it is up to the buyer to structure their supplier questionnaire.

How to manage the relationship on a daily basis?

Signing the contract is only the beginning. Operational management makes all the difference:

1. Regular Steering Committee Meetings: monthly during the first year, quarterly thereafter.
2. Shared dashboard : Up-to-date KPI, action plan, top 10 recurring incidents.
3. Annual Improvement Plan : quantitative commitment to reduce MTBF, improve MTTR.
4. Annual field audit : adversarial visit of some markers, inspection of intervention sheets.
5. Renewal Clause: At 18 months, possibility to renegotiate or terminate without penalty if KPIs are not met.

On site, the best executed contracts are those where the client is genuinely involved. A maintainer left to his own devices, without friendly pressure and without serious follow-up, will naturally drift towards the minimum required by the union.

What are the classic pitfalls to avoid?

Some errors often come up in feedback reports:

• Underestimating the cost of spare parts : on some models, a payment module costs 1,200 €, a meter housing 800 €.
• Forgetting regulatory updates : transition to OCPP 2.0.1, CB AFIR payment, these changes are not automatically supported in an old contract.
• Mixing up supervision and maintenance : supervision detects the failure, but without a maintenance contract in place, the ticket remains open.
• Ignore vandalism : in some urban areas, it is the leading cause of unavailability. A specific clause is required.
• Ignoring the end of the manufacturer's warranty : between the 24th and 36th month, many breakdowns occur. A maintenance contract that starts at the right time prevents service gaps.

That said, the most insidious trap remains the unverifiable commercial promise. Be wary of availability rates of 99.5% announced without associated contractual penalties: without a quantified commitment in the contract, it's just literature.

Comment KARTES improve the maintenance of electric vehicle charging stations

Maintaining an IRVE fleet means managing field operations: geolocation of points, route planning, traceability of interventions, and communication with users and clients. It is precisely what KARTES, mobile application for intervention management developed in France, brings real added value. Here's how, from the perspective of the various stakeholders involved.

What is KARTES and how does it integrate into IRVE maintenance?

KARTES is a SaaS platform for field intervention management, originally designed for local authorities (anti-graffiti, urban cleanliness, biodiversity). The architecture, based on mapping and geolocated tracking, is particularly well suited for the maintenance of infrastructure distributed in public spaces, such as charging stations. The mobile application works on Android and iOS, with a web interface for the client-side management.

In practice, each post becomes a geolocated object within the application, with its intervention history, before/after photos, consumed parts, and time spent. Technicians receive their mission orders on their smartphones, complete their intervention forms on site, and the data is sent back in real time to the backoffice.

What benefits for the maintenance technician on site?

The maintainer is the profession that benefits most directly from the features of KARTES. User feedback shows several concrete gains:

• Reduction of unnecessary trips : map-based planning optimizes routes, groups interventions by area, saves fuel and time.
• Simplified field data entry : before/after photos, digital signature, automatic geolocation. No more retyping the forms in the evening at the office.
• Viewable history : on site, the technician instantly sees past interventions on the kiosk, which avoids having to perform a complete diagnosis from scratch.
• Offline Mode : essential in basements or dead zones. Data synchronizes as soon as coverage is restored.
• Automated Reporting : performance indicators are automatically calculated, no need to re-enter Excel.

By the way, on a fleet of 200 units, the productivity gain observed on comparable cases easily reaches 20 to 30% of technician time. This represents several full-time equivalents saved over the year, or more units maintained with the same workforce.

What benefits does the ordering community gain?

The community, whether it operates its own terminals directly or has concessioned them, needs visibility. KARTES addresses several key structural challenges:

• Real-time dashboard : number of open tickets, ongoing interventions, out-of-service kiosks, by geographic area.
• Contractual commitment tracking : GTI, GTR, availability rates automatically calculated from field data.
• Justification of public expenditures : each intervention is recorded, photographed, and timestamped. Regional audit chamber inspections become less anxiety-inducing.
• Open Data : possibility to export statistics for open data publication, which meets an increasing citizen demand.
• Multi-vendor management : for communities working with multiple service providers (by geographic area or by type of kiosk), a consolidated view prevents fragmentation.

In practice, a medium-sized metropolis with 500 stations can halve the time spent on administrative management of maintenance contracts. The mobility service can then spend more time on deployment strategy and less on operational monitoring.

What benefits for the neighbor and the end user?

Users never see the application KARTES directly, and that's all the better. But they perceive its effects:

• More often available outlets : fine traceability allows identifying outlets with recurring issues and targeting corrective actions.
• Shortened response times : automatic prioritization brings critical tickets to the top of the queue.
• Improved User Communication : some local authorities use the data to publish the real-time status of kiosks, or even the estimated time to restore service.
• Reduction of construction site nuisances : interventions are scheduled in order to limit parking blockages.

For the resident, the most visible effect remains the decrease in the number of kiosks displaying a "out of service" sign for weeks. And for the user, it's the regained confidence: being able to rely on the kiosk referenced in their application, instead of having to systematically plan a backup option.

Comment KARTES does it actually reduce maintenance costs?

Reducing costs does not mean compromising on quality; it means eliminating inefficiencies. Several cost-saving levers are measurable:

1. Route Optimization : fewer kilometers, less fuel, less vehicle wear. On a national scale, this can represent several tens of thousands of euros per year.
2. Reduction of duplicate interventions : thanks to the shared history, the technician arrives with the correct part and the right tools, resulting in a successful first intervention in 80 to 90 % of cases instead of 60 to 70 %.
3. Reduction of administrative time : no more double entry, no more paper forms scanned and sent by email. The gains on the back-office are massive.
4. Detection of Contractual Drifts : the client immediately sees when a maintainer is driving nails, allowing action to be taken before the end of the year.
5. Data capitalization : at 12 or 24 months, the historical data allows identifying the most fragile charging station models, problem areas, and guiding future investments.

On-site feedback shows a return on investment generally achieved within less than 12 months for a fleet of 50 or more stations. Beyond that, gains increase as the historical database expands.

The importance of geolocated and timestamped photos

A detail that makes a big difference: the photo taken by the technician from his smartphone is automatically geolocated and timestamped. What seems trivial actually solves several practical problems:

• Evidence of intervention in case of a dispute with the client.
• Visual documentation of the state before/after for reports.
• Traceability of damages for insurance claims or legal actions in cases of vandalism.
• Internal training tool: photos taken from the field feed a case database for new technicians.

Nevertheless, this feature is not merely a gimmick. It changes the very nature of the contractual relationship, shifting from a declarative logic to a probative logic. And this, local authority lawyers particularly appreciate.

Integration with OCPP supervisions: a near future

The natural evolution of a platform like KARTES, it's the direct integration with the OCPP supervisions of the CPO. The idea: when a charging point goes down, the OCPP alert automatically generates a ticket KARTES, which is dispatched to the nearest on-call team. The ticket follows its entire history until resolution, and the kiosk is reintegrated into the active pool once confirmed by the on-site technician.

This closed-loop supervision-intervention-restart cycle is the Holy Grail of IRVE maintenance. Some operators have implemented it on their own internal tools, but few external maintainers have access to it. An open business platform, with APIs and webhooks, changes the game for maintainers who don't have the resources to develop their own stack.

How is it deployed KARTES on an existing IRVE park?

Setting up an intervention management tool on an existing fleet can seem intimidating. In practice, the deployment follows four steps:

1. Import of the meter reference data : from a CSV file or via connection to the existing supervision system. Geolocation, model, power, commissioning date, everything is imported at once.
2. Workflow configuration : intervention types (preventive, corrective, vandalism), forms, validations, required authorizations. KARTES adapts to existing internal processes, without imposing its own model.
3. Team Training: technicians (1 to 2 hours are sufficient), planners (half a day), pilots (one day). Mobile ergonomics have been designed for non-expert users.
4. Field Pilot : over 2 to 4 weeks, in parallel with existing tools. Allows adjusting parameters before full deployment.

The transition to production generally takes 6 to 8 weeks for a medium-sized fleet. Managing the change remains the key factor: technicians used to paper or another tool need support, but most quickly adopt the tool once they perceive the benefits.

10 Questions and Answers About Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

Here are the most frequently asked questions by users, neighbors, operators, and local authorities. The answers are intentionally concise to facilitate quick reading and use with a voice assistant.

What is the difference between an AC and DC charging station?

An AC socket provides alternating current, which will be converted to direct current by the onboard charger in the vehicle. A DC socket directly supplies direct current to the battery, bypassing the onboard charger. Result: DC allows much higher power levels (50 to 400 kW), therefore significantly shorter charging times, but with a hardware cost multiplied by 5 to 10.

How long does it take to recharge an electric car?

It depends on the power of the charging station and the car's ability to absorb it. With a home wallbox of 7.4 kW, expect 6 to 10 hours for a full recharge. With a 22 kW AC charging station, 2 to 4 hours if the car accepts three-phase charging. With a fast charger of 150 kW, it takes approximately 25 to 35 minutes to charge the battery from 10% to 80%.

What power rating of junction box is required for my application?

For daily residential use, 7.4 kW (32 A single-phase) more than adequately meet the needs of the majority of drivers. In tertiary sectors, 11 or 22 kW allow a single charging station to be shared among several employees. Fast DC (50 kW and above) is only justified for roaming uses or high-intensity fleets with rapid turnover.

Does a charging station consume electricity when it is not charging?

Yes, but very little. A sleeping kiosk typically consumes between 5 and 20 watts for its control electronics and network communication. Over a full year, this amounts to 50 to 175 kWh, which is less than 50 euros at the regulated rate. Recent models include low-power modes that further reduce this expense.

Can you install a charging station yourself at home?

For a power rating less than or equal to 3.7 kW (single domestic socket), yes technically, provided the NF C 15-100 standard is respected. Above that, installation by a qualified IRVE professional is mandatory, and also conditions access to ADVENIR assistance or the CITE tax credit for individuals. Self-installation above 3.7 kW exposes the user in case of a claim.

Does my home insurance cover my charging station?

Most multi-risk home insurance policies cover the meter under the building or equipment section, provided it has been declared. Make sure to inform your insurer during installation, which is usually free of charge but may affect the coverage. In case of a major incident (electrical fire), the lack of IRVE qualification of the installer may lead to a refusal of coverage.

What to do if a public kiosk breaks down?

On the kiosk, an assistance number and a unique identifier for the charging point are normally displayed (AFIR requirement). Call this number and mention the identifier: the operator can often resolve the issue remotely, or open an intervention ticket. You can also report the fault via your preferred mobility application, which feeds the collaborative databases.

Can a charging station be installed in a condominium?

Yes, and the LOM law has significantly simplified the procedures. The right to install allows a co-owner or tenant to install a charging station at their own expense, on their private space or on a dedicated common area, without prior approval from the AG in most cases. The syndic must be informed, and the installation must be carried out by a qualified IRVE professional.

What are the fire risks associated with a charging station?

Statistically, the risk of fire in a compliant installation is very low, comparable to that of other household electrical equipment. The main causes identified are non-compliant installations, undersized cables, or failures in domestic sockets used for excessively long loads. A dedicated socket, installed according to the standard, eliminates almost all of these risks.

How can I know if a charging station is compatible with my vehicle?

In Europe, nearly all public charging stations use a Type 2 (AC) connector and CCS Combo 2 (DC), compatible with vehicles sold in the EU since 2017. For older models equipped with CHAdeMO or specific sockets, there are still a few compatible stations, but the network is shrinking. Simply check the connector displayed on the station and that of your vehicle.

Conclusion

Electric vehicle charging has become a real public infrastructure issue, halfway between urban lighting, mobile telephony, and traditional gas stations. For local authorities, operators, and maintainers, the challenge is no longer so much about installing charging stations as ensuring their long-term availability. And that's where the issue gets complicated.

Choosing the right maintenance provider, structuring a contract with realistic KPIs, equipping your teams with the right digital tools—these are the real questions to consider once the initial deployment is complete. Experience shows that the most reliable parks are not necessarily those that cost the most to deploy, but those that are managed with rigor on a daily basis.

For maintainers and local authorities, professional tools such as KARTES provide concrete solutions to operational challenges: intervention geolocation, traceability, automated reporting, and increased field productivity. In a sector expected to welcome 250,000 new charging points by 2030 according to Avere-France projections, industrializing maintenance processes is no longer an option.

If this article has clarified the issues surrounding electric vehicle charging, share it with your teams, your partners, or your elected officials. The subject deserves a genuine shared understanding, not just a few commercial brochures. And if you manage an IRVE fleet, perhaps now is the time to take a closer look at how your field data can save you time, money, and most importantly, improve the quality of service for users.