Fastned increased its turnover by 45 percent to almost 38 million euros in the first half of the year. Despite a net loss of 11 million euros, CEO Michel Langesal is very satisfied with the results. “We have already managed to acquire new locations in record time, in the last six months. This puts us on track to a thousand charging stations.”

According to Ingzal, the company is on track to meet its goal of 1,000 charging locations by 2030. This means that Fastned is able to power “a very fast-growing electric vehicle market.” “We see that the market in Europe has grown by 1.3 percent in the last six months. This is happening in a context where governments are bringing subsidies in line with price parity From electric cars. There are much better, more affordable electric cars on the way.

For many consumers, this is a good reason to pause. The fact that the electric car market has nevertheless grown by more than 1 percent is a sign of strength – and Fastend has grown faster than the market, says Langesal. The fact that the fast-charging company is reporting a net loss is entirely within the planning. A net loss is the result of expansion and that is exactly what we want: the existing sites are profitable and we want to build more of them.

This may result in higher costs in the short term, but overall, a good business case can be built. Over the past six months, Fastned has issued a record number of new bonds. This has allowed the company to finance all the stations installed in the past six months. “It’s important to look at the cash flow. Given the rapid growth in volume, that cash flow becomes positive. If you can do some of your investments finance From your cash flow, this makes you very independent and you will have to issue less bonds.

200 new sites

It typically takes about a year and a half to build a new fast-charging site. Langesal expects the pace to pick up next year with the additional space for up to 200 new sites. “And we expect that in the next six years we will also be able to secure the next 500 sites on our way to the 1,000 target. We are very happy with that.”

At the moment, the problems with the electricity grid are mainly a Dutch problem. But according to Langesal, the grid is now deployed with sufficient capacity because the necessary grid connections have been contracted. “So this is the value we have created through early investment. We will also see this happen in other countries. But this is primarily a barrier to new entrants who enter the market late.”

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