France is on the way to its electric revolution. Sales of electric cars are sometimes up and down but still promising, driven by government aid and growing ecological awareness. At the same time, the charging network is developing at great speed. As of December 31, 2024, France now has 154,694 public charging points, an increase of 31% compared to the previous year.. An impressive figure which places France among the good European students, with an average of 230 terminals per 100,000 inhabitants.
A territorial coverage that is still very uneven
Île-de-France is the champion with 26,538 charging points. The capital region thus concentrates almost a sixth of French terminals, followed by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes which has 18,401 points. The latter also stands out for its total installed power: 918,112 kW, the largest in the country. A record which can be explained by the presence of numerous fast and ultra-fast terminals.
But behind these encouraging figures lies a more contrasting reality. Guyana only has 31 terminals for its entire territory. Rural areas also remain under-equipped, creating real electrical deserts.
The race for power and availability
Charging infrastructures are diversifying to meet the different needs of users. Alternating current terminals, delivering between 7.4 and 22 kW, represent 47% of the fleet. Slower (but less expensive), they are ideal for daily charging or extended stops. Direct current terminals, which are faster, make up 18% of the network. Among them, 5% exceed 350 kW, allowing several hundred kilometers of autonomy to be recovered in a few minutes.
The availability of terminals is also improving, although progress remains to be made. The immediate access rate reaches 95%, which means that a driver generally finds a free terminal upon arrival. However, the technical availability rate varies between 92.4% and 94.8% depending on the type of terminal. Even more worrying, 5% of charging points remain out of service for more than a week, creating frustrating situations for users.
Rapid development, but progress still needs to be made
Terminals are multiplying mainly in strategic locations: 44% in businesses, 32% in public parking lots and 17% on roads. Large commercial brands are actively participating in this expansion, aware of the attraction that terminals represent for their customers. The intensive use of the network, with a record of 25.7 average sessions per point in December 2024, confirms the relevance of these installations.
France is therefore progressing rapidly towards a mature charging network. The government objective of 400,000 charging points by 2030 seems achievable at the current rate of deployment. Nevertheless, efforts remain necessary to guarantee homogeneous coverage of the territory and impeccable reliability of the installations. The success of the electric transition depends on it.
- France has 154,694 public charging points, or 230 terminals per 100,000 inhabitants.
- Territorial disparities persist, with a concentration of terminals in urban areas
- The network is growing rapidly, but maintenance and reliability still need to improve
