Electric vehicle app Monta partners with CTEK

Electric vehicle (EV) charging software platform Monta and charge point manufacturer CTEK will provide a complete package of EV charging for UK businesses - from charge point installation and management to payment and customer support - under a new agreement.

While plug-in cars grew by 280% between 2019 and 2021, the number of public charge points increased by less than 70%.

The companies believe the partnership presents the perfect opportunity for more business and land-owners on board.

“Although the number of charge points have increased over the past few years, it simply isn’t moving fast enough,” said Alok Dubey, UK Country Manager at Monta. “We believe there’s a real gap in the market for UK businesses to start offering EV chargers, which is why we’ve partnered with CTEK to provide a service that streamlines and manages the entire process.”

The UK government recently extended the Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) throughout 2022 and expanded it to provide more support for small businesses, with up to £15,000 available per building towards the cost of installing charge points.

“Combining the software of Monta and hardware of CTEK means business owners get an end-to-end solution with minimal fuss. As everything is connected, it means we can see potential owners through the entire process - from installation to completion - to get them up and running as fast as possible,” said Dubey.

The partnership will provide businesses with features such as smart queueing, reservation, and load-balancing. Plus, as the charge points are open protocol, any make or model of EV is able to use the chargers.

Cecilia Routledge, Global Director Energy & Facilities at CTEK, said: “From our own research, we know that charger anxiety and infrastructure shortages present the biggest roadblocks for potential EV owners, but there’s a huge opportunity for UK businesses to solve this conundrum while opening up a brand new revenue stream.

“To keep up with the pace of EV demand, we need to be able to provide chargers that can solve current challenges as well as prepare for the next generation of electric vehicles," she said.

"Monta’s intelligent charging features as well as its ability to embrace open charge points were important factors for us when deciding to team up, and we’re ready to make it even easier for business owners to provide charging solutions of their own."

Established in Sweden more than 20 years ago, CTEK is one of the longest-serving businesses in the battery and vehicle charging market. Operating in more than 70 countries, it has a reputation for quality, reliability and being first to market with new products and technologies,  with CTEK products regularly topping ‘Best Buy’ tables.

Available as a web-based app, Monta connects business owners with manufacturers and installers to help provide EV charge points. Manufacturers can use the app to find businesses interested in installing charge points, while business owners can track energy consumption, usage, and costs in real-time.

Europe electric vehicle charging infrastructure grows four-fold in five years but faces challenges

The global electric vehicle charging infrastructure market revenue is expected to register a CAGR of 38.6%, and market size to increase from US$5.64bn in 2020 to US$147.94bn by 2030, according to Emergen Research.

Although momentum in charging infrastructure has increased, with Europe’s public charger count increasing fourfold between 2015 and 2020, four risks could turn charging into a bottleneck, according to McKinsey:

• Regulations In many geographies, securing permits to build chargers, construct sites, and connect to the electric grid can require months, or even years, of planning.
• Grid Especially in areas with high charging demand, the electrical grid needs to be upgraded to expand power capacity—which include expensive and time-consuming updates.
• Resources Several resources are in short supply, including skilled technicians, production capacity for fast-charging hardware, and enough green energy to make EVs fully environmentally friendly.
• Cost EV charging infrastructure is not cheap; in the European Union, a typical 350kW charger can cost $150,000, including hardware, installation, and planning.