Finding the sweet spot for car park EV charging

The middle-ground is the most productive area for chargepoint providers to invest in, suggests CTEK’s Viktors Nikolajevs

Public car parks offering electric vehicle (EV) charging should provide a mix of charging power to appeal to the widest pool of potential visitors. But the sweet spot for boosting visitor dwell time and spend, and charging value for money, can be found in the middle ground.

Quickly growing types of public EV chargepoints in the UK are the medium paced units, delivering at least 8kW and less than 50kW, and the fastest at above 150kW.

Analysis by CTEK of Zapmap data showing the number and types of new UK public chargepoint installations reveals that fast chargepoints delivering at least 8kW and less than 50kW have grown their share of the overall market every year since at least 2021 – from 15% in 2021 to 24% at the end of 2024.

For destinations wishing to increase visitor numbers and dwell time, the (medium speed) fast chargers provide a cost and benefit advantage for the EV driver and therefore the destination. The 8-50kW spectrum includes faster DC charging up to 50kW and AC charging up to 22kW.

Public chargepoints delivering 8kW to 49kW of power cost an average of 59 pence per kWh in February 2025, according to the AA’s EV Recharge report, significantly lower than the 74p average for rapid (50-149kW) and 78p for ultra-rapid (150kW+), saving drivers at least £6 for an 80 per cent charge of a car with a 50kWh battery.

For destinations hoping to attract visitors to dwell for two hours or more, a 22kW chargepoint such as CTEK’s CC3 can provide such an 80% charge or more in that time if the car’s onboard charger can handle 22kW. Many current models have an 11kW limit for AC charging, but even then 11kW for two hours can provide towards 100 miles of motoring.

Also achieving continuous year on year market share rises are the ultra-rapid chargepoints providing 150kW and above. Consistently falling market shares have been clocked up by both of the other segments – under 8kW and between 50kW and 150kW.

The most up to date data, from Zapmap’s EV charging statistics as of 31 March 2025, shows those trends continuing. The 7kW and below chargepoints remain the most numerous being installed, but its share is falling and the fast (8-50kW) sector is catching up on the rate of installs.

The typical EV driver appreciates having a choice of public chargepoint types (slow, fast, rapid and ultra-rapid) for the various charging needs they face. They might want a 20 minute rapid top-up on a longer journey. Or a slower, cheaper charge over a period of hours.

Destinations should look at their offer from the EV driver’s perspective. A retail or leisure destination will want the driver and their passengers to linger, consume and spend. That’s where fast AC charging is an attractive additional draw for the EV driver to visit, plug in and linger.

Using three-phase electricity in charging infrastructure enables faster charging. And three-phase can be used by many plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs) too. Modern PHEV models can charge as quickly on AC chargepoints as fully electric BEVs.

AC installations generally require less investment per plug, meaning a destination or the chargepoint 0perator (CPO) the destination works with can install more chargepoints with the extra sockets improving availability.

With EVs already numbering one in twenty of the record 42 million vehicles on the UK’s roads, and an almost 35% increase in plug-in vehicles during 2024, destinations should prepare now for a near future with many more EV drivers seeking out public charging from 8kW to 22kW. Futureproofing charging installations to facilitate expansion and higher charging speeds is a wise investment.

Viktors Nikolajevs is UK key account manager at CTEK