Italy, Spain, France, Austria, Germany, Portugal, Slovenia and Greece will be affected by the increase charging points for electric mobility

The race towards the adaptation of the electric charging network for cars marks a point in favor of users, who in a few years will have to deal mainly with electric mobility.

If the northern European countries are a little ahead in the development of the charging station network, the southern European countries are chasing, a real race against time to adapt to future needs.

For this reason, the European Community has decided to finance a project for the installation of 2000 new charging stations at high power in eight EU countries.

In fact, the European Commission and the Italian Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) have Be Charge, a wholly owned subsidiary of Plenitude (Eni), over 100 million euros for the construction by 2025 of one of the largest high-speed charging networks in Europe .

The objective of the operation is to encourage the development of infrastructure dedicated to electric mobility and accelerate the energy transition.

In detail, CDP, as a national promotional institution, has granted a loan of 50 million to which are added another 50.4 million in non-refundable grants assigned by the Commission Union for the creation of a network of over 2,000 "ultra-fast" recharging points, with a minimum power of 150kW along the main European transport corridors of eight countries: Italy, Spain, France, Austria, Germany, Portugal, Slovenia and Greece.

The European Commission's contribution was awarded last September by the European Executive Agency for Climate, Infrastructure and the Environment (CINEA ) within the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and precisely within the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Facility.

Cassa Depositi e Prestiti acted as implementing partner of the European Commission for Italy, confirming its role as facilitator in accessing programs and to European resources for Italian companies and as a lender in support of the development of transport infrastructures and sustainable mobility.

Adina Vălean, European Commissioner for Transport, said: "With the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Facility, we intend to support the rapid introduction of charging infrastructure.

This will allow zero and low emission vehicles to take to the market and ultimately make our climate goals a reality.

The Be Charge project will make a positive contribution, creating a network of ultra-fast charging points for electric vehicles in eight Member States.

Such an extensive network will further reassure consumers, encouraging them to recharge their cars across the EU and thus promoting electric mobility".

Stefano Goberti, Chief Executive Officer of Plenitude, said: “The funds awarded are clear recognition of Be Charge's commitment to electric mobility sector which represents an important element of the Plenitude strategy in support of the energy transition.

This operation is part of the plan of the Company, which today has over 15,000 charging points, and has the objective of developing a European high-power infrastructure for vehicles electricity and to double its network by 2026, reaching 30,000 points".

Massimo Di Carlo, Deputy General Manager and Business Director of CDP, said: “We are proud to have concluded this financing agreement at favor of the Be Charge project to develop an efficient and sustainable transport system and increasingly direct our commitment towards the energy transition.

Moreover, the transaction confirms on the one hand the fruitful collaboration and synergies with all European stakeholders and on the other the role of CDP as a facilitator in access to European Union resources for the implementation of sustainable projects, where Be Charge is a virtuous example”.

Automatic translation. We apologize for any inaccuracies. Original article in Italian.

Info: ENI