A CPO's Guide to Navigating the Changing US Landscape

With the change in the US administration and a shift of Federal focus and investment seemingly away from clean transportation, our CEO, Dr Stefan Furlan takes a look at how CPOs can still prosper in this changing landscape.   

As we publish this, it is widely reported that there has been a change in US federal policy toward clean energy and the electrification of transportation, and specifically, federal support for EV charging network expansion.

For example, this article published by the American public broadcaster NPR states that the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, which has fuelled EV infrastructure investment across the US, is under review and they report that this has put into limbo about $3 billion that states expected to receive for future construction projects.

According to EV News, there is some uncertainty about the legal position and how this will all play out in individual states. But it seems that this administration is less supportive of the EV Industry, and this uncertainty undermines confidence - an essential ingredient for the kind of infrastructure investment this industry needs.

The landscape has clearly changed, and Charge Point Operators (CPOs) need to adjust if they want to grow their business.

"The best chance to deploy capital is when things are going down" - Warren Buffet

The good news comes from automotive industry watcher Cox Automotive (parent company of the respected “Kelley Blue Book”) who predict that the EV share of new American car sales will rise from 9% in 2024 to 10% in 2025. This suggests that while underlying consumer demand won’t be quite where it was predicted to be a few years ago, it will remain constant.

In other words, the consumer demand for public charging will continue as the ratio of EVs and available public chargers will not significantly change, and the opportunity for profitable charge points with high utilization remains.

The famous investor and businessman Warren Buffet is quoted as saying that: “​​The best chance to deploy capital is when things are going down”. Whilst we are not suggesting that things are going down, as EV consumer demand remains constant, this uncertainty does create an opportunity for good, well-run Charge Point Operators investing in infrastructure today.

But how will they navigate this changing landscape?

Four Keys to Success

We believe that however challenging the EV charging market landscape becomes, there are four key areas that CPOs need to address to take advantage of this continued consumer demand for public charging despite the potential absence of federal support.

Be operationally efficient

• CPOs will likely need to do more with less and get extremely efficient at assessing sites, prioritizing good projects, and quickly getting from planning and discovery to monetization.
• CPOs must evaluate the viability of their current estate and projects, quickly deciding which projects should be killed and which projects they should double down on.

Be competitive

• CPOs will need to differentiate in their market; as the pool of federal investment dollars shrinks, the market will be more competitive for the available dollars.
• CPOs will need to demonstrate that they are the right local partner, as some states are continuing to commit to clean transportation initiatives; there will be fierce local competition for these regional funds.

Be sales efficient

• CPOs will need to move quickly to take advantage of opportunities as they become available, quickly assessing the feasibility and viability of sites and closing contracts, investments and partnerships.
• CPOs will need to have confidence in the profitability of their project pipeline. With reduced federal investment funding in the market, there will be little margin for error in pursuing non-viable contracts or unprofitable sites.  

Be investible

• CPOs will need to be trusted and credible in how they demonstrate the profit potential of new sites to overcome the current financial uncertainty and reduced investor confidence and the potential delays this can cause to funding during the planning phase.  
• CPOs may need to be flexible in demonstrating the potential for smaller projects as initial investment budgets decrease. Efficiently executing against these would gain investment trust and the potential for funding growth in these opportunities. 
• CPOs must be prepared for a different investment conversation as investor expectations change from a federal-supported drive to roll out infrastructure and the importance of the number of chargers to be deployed to presenting more commercial utilization forecasts, like the number of sessions, users, unit profitability, and so on. 

How Dodona Analytics can help

Be competitive

Stand out from the competition as the right partner.

CPOs can become a preferred partner through being responsive, agile, and differentiated from their competition as our platform gives them a speed advantage by assessing hundreds of sites instantly while allowing customization to create a bespoke offering that fits their business and the opportunity.  

Be operationally efficient

Do more, faster, with a leaner team.

With our platform, CPOs can streamline the entire process from sales to delivery by capturing and visualizing key data through collaborative features, reducing risks and unexpected costs. Once a project is underway, it ensures efficient planning, delivery, profitability, and real-time, 360-degree visibility for both teams and end customers.

Be sales efficient

Find and secure profitable sites and quickly close contracts.

CPOs can quickly find and asses prospective sites, win more deals, and land bigger contracts as our intuitive platform empowers sales teams with fast, accurate insights, enabling quick commercial decisions without burdening operations or requiring complex data science. By aggregating and visualizing data efficiently, they can assess sites, process deals faster, and focus on growth, while collaborative tools and reporting enhance trust and reduce commercial risk.

Be investible

Build investor trust by quickly and consistently picking profitable sites

With a proven, data-backed approach to finding profitable sites, CPOs can demonstrate credibility, speed of execution, and trust to investors, as our platform is designed for CPOs to eliminate guesswork, enabling rapid, confident investment decisions and network growth. 

What do you think?

If this resonates with you, I'd love to hear from you, connect with me on LinkedIn or use the contact us form and one of my team will be in touch.