Charging operators form Spark Alliance, Europe’s largest charging network

The Spark Alliance network will span 25 European countries, and enable users of any single Alliance company’s app to locate and pay for charging across the whole network. In other words, each company’s app will display not only their own charging hubs, but that of other members, with transparent pricing across the network. The move aims to remove the need for end users to download multiple charging apps, immediately opening up access to a total of 11,000 Spark chargers.

In a German statement, the Spark Alliance said: “Drivers can head to any charging station in the Alliance network and use any of the Alliance members’ apps to start and stop their charging session and pay. This applies to all charging stations of the four companies and creates a standardised, open network for everyone.” The companies believe the collaboration will “drive the democratisation of public charging” and further remove barriers to EV adoption across Europe.

That sounds a lot like roaming, and it will be, but with a premium approach: instead of relying on sheer mass like other providers – some apps such as the one from EnBW Hypernetz offer access to over 800,000 charging points across Europe thanks to the connection to Hubject’s Intercharge network. The Spark Alliance only wants to offer users access to select high power charging stations.

From the summer of 2025, charging stations belonging to the other partners will be displayed in the app of the respective alliance members. In the first development step, users of the respective app will be forwarded to the payment page of the respective Spark member, where the charging process can then be started at the ad-hoc price, as an Ionity spokesperson explained to electrive. In the next stages of development, this process will be further simplified and from autumn, proper roaming will be possible. Charging processes at other partners’ charging stations will then be billed directly via the user account of the app from which the charging process was initiated. Furthermore, uniform prices are not planned. Instead, each charging network will continue to set its own prices.

“Strong signal for e-mobility”

Jeroen van Tilburg, CEO of IONITY, said: “Driving and charging an electric vehicle should be exciting, not overwhelming. Our collaboration, driven by Europe’s leading charging specialists, is a significant step forward and sends a strong signal for e-mobility in Europe: reliable fast charging, straightforward across 25 EU countries – all within the app that drivers already trust.”

Michiel Langezaal, CEO and co-founder of Fastned, added: “EV drivers often find themselves in a maze: too many apps, charging cards and low-quality charging points create confusion and uncertainty. We are solving this problem by bringing together Europe’s leading charging infrastructure companies to create the most relaxed charging experience in Europe’s largest network.”

Each of the four companies operates HPC stations across several countries, with the new network reportedly to be powered entirely by renewables.

Source: Info via email