For businesses making the transition to electric vehicles for their fleets, the logistics of how and where to charge them is a highly important consideration. Generally, this choice comes down to depot charging and public charging hubs, but what are these two types of charging, and which is best for your business’s needs? Below, we discuss what the difference is between depot charging and public HGV hubs, and which of these is the most suitable option for your operations.
What Is Depot Charging?
Depot charging is the charging of an EV fleet at a company’s own site, such as a logistics yard, distribution centre, or vehicle depot. Businesses typically charge their vehicles before they leave for the day or after returning from their routes.
These offer a reliable option for fleets that operate on consistent routes and schedules, where vehicles start and finish their day in the same location.
Benefits of Depot Charging
- Reliable operations – Fleets will start each shift fully charged.
- Lower long-term costs – Electricity can often be delivered at lower costs than public charging.
- Greater control – Businesses can manage their own infrastructure and charging schedules.
Considerations for Depot Charging
Depot charging can be a convenient option once in place, but it first requires planning and investment for grid connections, electrical capacity, and charging infrastructure to ensure that a site is appropriately prepared and provides a valuable return on investment.
What Are Public Charging Hubs?
Public charging hubs are shared EV charging locations that are available to the general public. These can be found at many locations across the country, such as motorway service stations, urban charging hubs, and retail sites.
These are a common option for fleets operating long-distance routes or vehicles that do not regularly return to a central depot.
Benefits of Public Charging Hubs
- Flexibility – Vehicles are able to charge wherever needed at the many public charging hubs across the country.
- Rapid charging availability – Many hubs offer high-power DC chargers designed for quick top-ups.
- Support for long journeys – A useful option for fleets travelling beyond their usual operational radius.
Considerations for Public Charging Hubs
Though depot charging does offer convenience when needed, the regular use of public charging hubs can build up to be quite expensive. In addition, availability for chargers can be limited for peak times, and the unplanned downtime can have an impact on operational efficiency.
Depot Charging vs Public Hubs – Which Is Best?
Both depot charging and public hubs offer practical and convenient means for recharging your business’s electric fleet. However, depot charging presents the most strategic, cost-effective, and reliable method of EV fleet charging.
While public hubs offer an immediate solution for drivers in need of recharging across long journeys when necessary, they ultimately are a less efficient option for regular business use. With power often costing significantly more than depot charging per kWh, in addition to the sudden downtime that can be experienced mid-operations, depot charging is often the more suitable option for businesses.
With regular, cheaper charging out of operating hours, depot charging ensures that your vehicles have all the power they need for each of their journeys, which can be reliably scheduled to function in line with your operations.
Supporting Depot Charging Infrastructure at Serconnect
If you’re considering opting for depot charging stations for your business, it’s vital that your EV charging infrastructure can consistently and dependably provide the power needed to keep your fleet running smoothly. Your grid connection capacity, power demand management, and future fleet growth all need to be considered, which is where our expertise as a dependable Independent Connection Provider (ICP) comes in.
At Serconnect, we deliver end-to-end electric vehicle charging hub installation to help businesses develop reliable charging infrastructure tailored to their site. Our team provides support from feasibility and planning through to final installation and energisation, so you can trust that your project is delivered efficiently and with the capacity needed for long-term fleet electrification.
Our services for EV charging hubs include:
- Feasibility studies and planning to assess site requirements
- Design and application support for new charging infrastructure
- Grid connection and electrical infrastructure installation
- All associated civil solutions
- Charger and substation installation
- Testing, commissioning, and final handover
To set up your depot charging infrastructure as simply as possible, we act as a single point of contact throughout the project, meaning that we can quickly address any issues to keep your installation on track and prevent any potential delays.
Get in Touch
Now that you’re aware of the many advantages that depot charging stations present for businesses, we at Serconnect can help you to get started with efficient EV charging infrastructure installation. In comparison to the DNO, we can set up your infrastructure with much faster completion times and in line with your budget requirements.
To speak to us about how we can help you to prepare your site to accommodate both your current and future power needs to keep your EV fleet running smoothly, get in touch with us today. A member of our team will be more than happy to discuss your best solution with you.
