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The five CPOs tested were Allego, Electra, Fastned, Ionity and Total Energies.

For the evaluation of the charging station operators, test drives took place between the end of July and the end of August 2024; there were some retests at the beginning of September. The test drivers covered around 1,800 kilometres in France and visited 25 charging stations. The test drivers completed a comprehensive evaluation form at each charging stop: about the charging station, the actual charging process and test calls to the providers‘ hotlines.

“Congratulations to Fastned for winning this year’s test. The consistently high level of performance in France is impressive – CPOs in other countries should learn a thing or two from this”, says connect author Hannes Rügheimer.

Fastned took the first place with 866 points and a rating of ‘very good’. In second place is Total Energies, last year’s test winner, with 830 points and the rating ‘good’. Ionity follows in third place with 787 points and also the rating ‘good’.

The test methodology

For the evaluation, the test teams drove through France and visited five stations per CPO. Registration and billing took place via charging cards and apps on the one hand and via the ad-hoc payment options supported by the CPO on the other. During charging, the teams wrote extensive protocols: about the conditions on site, the charging process and any errors that occurred. They also contacted the providers‘ hotlines to test the quality of service.

A special test procedure was developed for the e-mobility charging network test, which has been further developed this year. The weighting of the individual test criteria was refined. A more detailed description of the methodology can be found at www.connect.de/ladenetztest.

In parallel to France, connect Ladenetztest were also conducted in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.