One charger's year, as the controller books it
After the store closes, the controller opens the charger's annual statement: one page, sixteen lines, every number of this path in its place.
The statement is composed, but its structure is the one operators use to judge every charger: revenue by route, energy as the one variable cost, fixed costs by kind, and the result.
The questionWhich lines move with utilisation, which do not, and where does the money of stop 01 end up over a year?
Guess firstThe screen says 0.59 EUR per kWh. What does the controller book per ad hoc kilowatt-hour?RevealHide
0.496 EUR. The 0.59 includes 19% VAT, which the operator collects for the state. Revenue is always net.
What you are looking at
A profit and loss statement for one charger, the unit operators use to decide where to build next. Revenue is split by route, because and sessions are priced differently and paid at different times; allows the difference as long as it is proportionate and justified. Prices on the screen include VAT, 19% in Germany, while every line here is net. Select the lines to see what sits behind each one.
Sixteen lines, net of VAT. Composed from the assumptions of stops 01 and 07.
- Line 1One charger, one year
The controller books every charger as a profit centre. Utilisation is the first line because every line below moves with it (stop 07).
A composed statement. The assumptions are those of stop 07: 25,000 EUR fixed costs, 0.25 EUR per kWh for energy with grid fees and levies, a blended net price of 0.50 EUR per kWh; the ad hoc price of 0.59 EUR includes 19% VAT.
last year: barely above zero
this year: the statement above
the plan for next year
where the result is zero
Computed with the statement's prices and fixed costs. Revenue, energy and fees move with the kilowatt-hours; the fixed lines do not.
Reading the statement
- Two kinds of lines. Revenue, energy and fees are per kilowatt-hour: they rise and fall together. Everything from depreciation down is per year: it falls due regardless. The result is the gap between the two groups.
- Timing. Ad hoc money arrives within days from the card acquirer; roaming money arrives weeks later from the providers (stop 02). The statement ignores timing, the cash flow does not.
- What is not here. VAT, which passes through; the providers' margins, which are their statements; and the store's extra sales, which are the host's reason to say yes (stop 04).
Where the money of stop 01 ended up
The 23.60 EUR of one session became 19.83 EUR net, of which about 10.00 EUR paid for energy and , 0.50 EUR for payment fees and about 7.60 EUR for the charger's share of the fixed costs, leaving about 1.70 EUR. Over the year, the same shares add up to the statement above. How a whole site, with several chargers and its own grid connection, recovers its cost is the subject of Charging infrastructure, stop 08.
Check your understanding
3 questions. Answer all of them to complete this stop. Each answer explains itself.
Which lines of the statement rise when utilisation goes from 10% to 12%?
The per-kilowatt-hour lines move with the volume. The fixed lines, from depreciation to overhead, stay where they are, which is why the result grows faster than the volume.
The screen says 0.59 EUR per kWh, the statement books 0.496 EUR for ad hoc energy. Where is the difference?
Consumer prices include VAT. The operator keeps the net amount; the tax is not revenue.
What does the statement call fixed costs, and why?
Fixed means independent of volume. About 25,000 EUR a year fall due for this charger at 0% utilisation as at 30%.
- Roaming Charging in another company's network with your own card or app. EV charging fundamentals, stop 03 Glossary
- Ad hoc Charging without a contract, paid directly at the charger, for example by card or QR code. EV charging fundamentals, stop 05 Glossary
- AFIR Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (EU) 2023/1804: EU rules for public charging, from payment to coverage. EV charging fundamentals, stop 08 Glossary
- Grid fee What a grid operator charges for the use of its grid; it is part of the electricity price and, for larger connections, often also depends on the highest power drawn. Stop 01 Glossary
- EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 (AFIR), Article 5(3) and (5). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1804/oj. Checked 09 Oct 2026. © European Union, reused under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
- European Commission, Taxation and Customs Union: VAT rates applied in the Member States of the European Union. https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/taxation/vat/vat-directive/vat-rates_en. Checked 11 Oct 2026.
- European Commission, Taxation and Customs Union: VAT rates applied in the Member States of the European Union. https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/taxation/vat/vat-directive/vat-rates_en. Checked 11 Oct 2026.