Athens – September 18, 2026 -- Europe could save €10 billion in electricity grid investment by 2030 through smarter management of EV charging, according to a new study commissioned by EIT Urban Mobility, ChargeUp Europe and ACEA, and conducted by Siemens.
Grid upgrade costs could fall from €24.7 billion to €14 billion
The study, titled Electricity Grids in Europe, models 64 representative cities across the EU27 and three EEA countries to assess how rising electric vehicle adoption will strain distribution networks. Without intervention, grid reinforcement to accommodate EV growth would require an estimated €24.7 billion in investment by 2030. Deploying intelligent EV Load Management -- which coordinates charging timing and speed to avoid peak-demand overloads -- could reduce this figure to roughly €14 billion, avoiding €10.6 billion in capital spending.
All 64 cities analysed will need grid reinforcement as BEV numbers grow 3.8-fold
Battery electric vehicle numbers are projected to grow 3.8 times by 2030, and every one of the 64 cities studied requires some level of grid reinforcement to handle the increase. The study separately modelled residential, workplace, public, en route and depot charging, finding that where and when vehicles charge determines local grid stress and investment needs.
Low voltage networks absorb 77.7% of reinforcement costs
Residential charging is driving the bulk of the pressure: 77.7% of physical grid reinforcement investment is needed at the low voltage level. By 2030, between 55% and 62% of EV owners in the cities studied are expected to have access to residential charging, reinforcing the centrality of low voltage infrastructure to Europe's electrification pathway.
Combined with grid digitalisation, smart charging allows electricity networks to extract more capacity from existing infrastructure rather than building new lines and transformers, according to the study's findings.