Red Eléctrica de España (REE), as a facilitator of the energy transition in Spain, is working to boost the development of sustainable mobility. With this objective in mind, the Company has just published a map of smart charging points for electric vehicles in Spain. This initiative is included within the framework of the CECOVEL project; a project launched by Red Eléctrica in 2017 to monitor the demand associated with electric mobility in Spain.

The map monitors 562 smart public-access charging stations distributed nationwide that are managed by mobility operators that collaborate on the CECOVEL project (Ibil-Repsol, Gic, Fenie and Melib). “This is just another example of REE's commitment to electric mobility,” said Miguel Ángel Muro, Manager of System Operation Services Area for Red Eléctrica de España.

With an intuitive and easy-to-use display, the map offers users complete information on each charging point: the address where it is located, the type of charging it performs, the power rating and the connector model of each charging point. “We are working so that the map continues to grow with more charging points and that in the near future it may offer data from other operators and real-time information on the availability of each charging point,” added Mr. Muro.

Its main feature is that it integrates charging points equipped with ‘smart technology’ that gives us access to information in order to get to know the hourly consumption patterns associated with the use of the public-access charging stations as well as data regarding the increase experienced in the electricity demanded as a result of the use of the public-access charging stations.

CECOVEL, key to the safe implementation of the electric vehicle

With the aim of integrating the electric vehicle into the system in a safe and efficient way, Red Eléctrica launched CECOVEL in 2017, a pioneering project in Spain and Europe that monitors the electricity demanded by electric vehicles. In addition, it conducts studies to anticipate scenarios associated with the massive incorporation of electric vehicles.

To this end, the CECOVEL currently monitors 1,835 charging points, both public and private, which are managed by four mobility operators (Ibil-Repsol, Gic, Fenie and Melib). These are charging points with power ratings ranging from 2.3 kW to 350 kW and connected in real time to operators so that they can be managed remotely and intelligently.

“The data we manage allows us to affirm that the Spanish electricity system is prepared to take on the challenge of transitioning the Spanish vehicle fleet towards a new, more sustainable scenario. The electricity demand will increase by 1% for every million newly incorporated electric vehicles, a totally acceptable figure for the current electricity system,” said Miguel Ángel Muro.

Electric mobility, a reality in Spain

Spain already has more than 81,125 electric vehicles, with Madrid and Catalonia being the autonomous communities that register the highest penetration rate in Spain, with a fleet of 30,000 vehicles in the case of Madrid and 20,000 in Catalonia. According to the draft report of the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan, it’s estimated that Spain will have 5 million electric vehicles by 2030.

The promotion of electric mobility is key to fighting climate change and achieving the targets included within the framework of the Energy Transition. Currently, the transport sector is one of the sectors that most contributes to climate change. According to data from the Ministry for Ecological Transition [1] , in 2018, the transport sector accounted for 27% of total greenhouse gas emissions in Spain.

[1] Preliminary Report on Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) Inventory. 2018. Document (pdf).