Partners Fuel ChargePoint EV Charging Network Expansion

The ChargePoint EV (electric vehicle) charging station network remains in growth mode, fueled by driver and ecosystem partner demand across North America and Europe, according to CEO Pasquale Romano.

During the company's Q1 of fiscal 2024 -- which ended on April 30, 2023 -- ChargePoint "gave drivers and ecosystem partners access to approximately 745,000 EV ports in North America and Europe," Romano said.

Moreover, 243,000 of those ports are active ports under management on the ChargePoint network -- up from 225,000 ports in Q4 of fiscal 2023. Also, ChargePoint recently passed the 500,000 roaming port milestone, Romano said.

ChargePoint EV Charging Network: Additional Growth Statistics

The statements and statistics surfaced June 1, 2023, during ChargePoint's quarterly earnings call with Wall Street analysts. Among the additional anecdotes Romano shared:

• Approximately 21,000 of the 243,000 ports on the ChargePoint network are DC fast-charging -- up from approximately 19,000 at the end of Q4.
• Approximately one-third of the overall ports are located in Europe.
• ChargePoint's customer base includes 76% of the 2022 Fortune 50, as well as 56% of the 2022 Fortune 500. "This reflects excellent penetration given our land and expand strategy, the stickiness of our solutions, and our strong rebuy rates," Romano said.
• The ChargePoint EV charging network has fueled approximately 6.3 billion electric miles -- avoiding approximately 252 million cumulative gallons of gasoline and over 1.25 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, Romano said. (He did not describe the potential environmental issues related to EV charging networks, EV cars and potential circular economy considerations.)

ChargePoint EV Charging Network: Business Background, Partner Program

ChargePoint, founded in 2007, is based in Campbell, California. The company had 1,682 employees listed on LinkedIn as of June 3, 2023. As part of ChargePoint's EV charing station network, the company develops and operates a cloud subscription platform and software-defined charging hardware for homes and multifamily settings, workplaces, parking areas, hospitality, retail and transport fleets.

ChargePoint's partner program includes EV charging installation partners, automakers, resellers and distributors. Example partners include ALD Automotive -- which aligned with ChargePoint to create a new EV charging business in Europe for international and local corporate clients. The joint initiative involves an electric Mobility Service Provider (eMSP) business model that "will seek to accelerate corporate fleet electrification."

Financial Performance: Demand for ChargePoint's EV charging network appears strong. Among the proof points from Q1 of fiscal 2024:

• Revenue was $130.0 million -- up 59% from Q1 of fiscal 2023.
• GAAP net loss was $79.4 million -- down from $89.3 million in the corresponding quarter last year.

The financial results generally met or exceeded Wall Street's expectations, according to SeekingAlpha.

ChargePoint vs. Tesla-Ford EV Charging Network Partnership

The earnings results surfaced a few days after Tesla and Ford announced an EV charging network partnership. Starting in 2024, Ford's EV customers will be able to plug into Tesla's charging network across the United States and Canada.

During the ChargePoint earnings call, CFO Rex Jackson said the Tesla-Ford relationship was not of major concern to the company.

Meanwhile, additional competition looms worldwide. Among the recent developments: Allego is deploying 1,500 charging points at porta Group furniture stores throughout Germany, the companies announced on May 31, 2023.

United States EV Charging Station Network Priorities: Meanwhile, President Biden wants the United States to build 500,000 EV chargers on a Made-in-America charging network by 2030.

The Bid Administration's strategy calls for the federal government to:

• Publish minimum standards for federally funded EV infrastructure;
• finalize the Build America, Buy America implementation plan for EV charging equipment; and
• empower cities, towns, Tribes, and states to apply for the first round of $2.5 billion in competitive grants to build EV charging stations in communities across the country.

We'll be watching to see if or how ChargePoint's partner ecosystem taps into those federal dollars.