Savills says that these five countries account for 77% of the European chargers that will be needed in the next two years. For Germany, the UK and France, this is due to their large populations and high future EV demand which outstrips existing charging infrastructure, while Norway and Sweden have low existing charging infrastructure but the number of EVs per inhabitant is already comparatively high.

European hot spots for the development of new EV charging stations: 

According to Savills, this presents an opportunity for real estate landlords and investors to partner with private charging point operator companies (CPOs) or others to install EV infrastructure, which they can receive rental income from and/or use to increase footfall and dwell time to nearby assets, increasing income returns. Generally, CPOs will incur the cost of set-up and, while location dependant, landlords could expect to see rental income of between €1,000 to €5,000 per charger per annum for a 20-25 year lease length.

Tristam Larder, head of European Capital Markets at Savills, says: “With fiscal support in many countries acting as a carrot and environmental legislation as a stick, consumer demand for EVs across Europe is heading in only one direction. With many EV users not having access to home charging points, public infrastructure provision is essential. Many landlords have significant volumes of car parking spaces that could be suitable for installation, so this is an opportunity to monetise an asset that is largely underutilised while simultaneously strengthening potential revenue to other facilities via partnerships with CPOs.”

Bobby Barfoot, senior surveyor in Savills Automotive team, comments: “With the ban of new diesel and petrol vehicles set for 2035 most vehicle manufacturers and the companies in their supply chains have committed billions of investment, whether in pounds or Euros, into the transition to electrification of vehicles. The industry is now desperate for the infrastructure to be put in place to support the transition, and is eager to support initiatives that see landlords rewarded to install charging networks on their sites.”

Lydia Brissy, director in Savills European research team, adds: “All the major European countries need a massive growth in the supply of EV charging points in the next decade, although it’s clear from our analysis that the biggest initial opportunity for landlords lies in the countries at the top of our ranking: Germany, France, Sweden, Norway and the UK. There are challenges to overcome, however, namely grid capacity and the large upfront cost of grid reinforcement and connection, but by working together we believe that CPOs and landlords can share the risks and also the potentially large returns available.”