Surge in Demand for Charging Piles in Europe and the US, International Regulatory Standards Pose Challenges

With the global pursuit of the carbon neutrality goal,New energythe automotive market is developing rapidly. This is not only a trend but also an irreversible global consensus. Especially in the field of electric vehicles, the demand for related supporting facilities, such as electric vehicle charging piles, is growing rapidly worldwide. Against this backdrop, the overseas charging pile market shows huge development potential, especially in the European and American markets. However, with the rapid expansion of the market, the standards, regulations, and metrology requirements of charging piles have become new challenges for enterprises.

According to the data of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, Europe and the United States are the main overseas markets for charging piles at present. Compared with Chinas vehicle - to - charging - pile ratio of 6.8:1, the ratio in Europe and the United States is between 15:1 and 20:1, indicating a larger market space and demand. Especially on February 15, 2023, the US government officially released the final bill for the US electric vehicle charging pile network. It is expected that by 2030, electric vehicles in the United States will account for 50% of new vehicle sales, and 500,000 electric vehicle charging piles are planned to be installed, which undoubtedly provides huge market opportunities for charging equipment manufacturers.

International Charging Pile Standards and Regulatory Requirements

Facing different markets, charging pile products need to meet different international standards and regulatory requirements. Currently, the international charging pile connection structure standards mainly include Chinas national standard (GB/T 20234 series), the US standard CCS1, the EU standard CCS2, and the Japanese standard CHAdeMO. And the Combined Charging System CCS has become the current mainstream standard design form internationally.

In Europe, as a measuring instrument with metering function, the export of charging piles needs to meet the requirements of the MID 2014/32/EU Measuring Instrument Directive. This directive clarifies the method standards, conformity assessment procedures, and implementation deadlines for products to enter the EU market, especially the metrology requirements for electricity meters, which are mainly applicable to Appendix MI - 003 of the MID Directive.

In the United States, with the federal regulations 23CFR 680的形式设定了进入美国市场的充电桩产品的整体性发展规划和细节要求。尽管美国法规对测量仪器仪表的计量没有针对性的认证要求，但仍然以ANSI C12系列标准为主要的考核标准。

Requirements of Chinas Compulsory Verification System and Regional Requirements

It is worth mentioning that China also has clear requirements in the compulsory verification system. In October 2020, domestic electric vehicle charging piles were included in the Catalogue of Measuring Instruments Subject to Compulsory Management. Since January 1, 2023, compulsory verification has been implemented. This includes items such as appearance and marking inspection, working error, and clock time error, providing a standardized evaluation basis for ensuring the metrological accuracy of charging piles.

Metrology Access in Major European and American Markets

For Chinese production and export enterprises hoping to enter the European and American markets, studying and understanding the metrology access standards of these markets has practical significance. Since charging piles have an electric energy metering function and are related to the metering and billing of electricity consumption, in addition to meeting basic electrical safety and environmental protection requirements, exports also need to comply with local metrology technical regulations and corresponding metrology standard requirements.

Metrology Access in the European Market:

In the EU, the metrology access of charging pile products is mainly controlled by the MID 2014/32/EU Measuring Instrument Directive. This directive covers a series of measuring instruments, including equipment used for commercial transactions and public metrology. For charging piles, this means that specific metrology and technical requirements must be met to ensure the metrological accuracy of energy and the protection of consumer rights.

1、MID指令要求：As a measuring instrument with metering function, charging piles must meet the relevant requirements in the MID Directive, including but not limited to performance, reliability, data protection, and user information transparency. Specifically, for the metrology requirements of charging pile electricity meters, it is mainly applicable to Appendix MI - 003 of the MID Directive, involving the technical specifications and test standards of electricity meters.
Certification and Testing:Charging piles must be tested and evaluated by a certification body to obtain the CE mark and MID certification. This process usually includes type review, sample testing, and review of the production process. The test standards are mainly based on the EN 50470 series, especially EN 50470 - 3:2022, covering requirements such as insulation performance, accuracy, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), and safety.

Measurement Access in the US Market:

The measurement access requirements for charging piles in the US do not have a unified regulatory framework like that in Europe. However, in some states and regions, there are specific standards and requirements, especially regarding the measurement accuracy of electricity meters and charging services.

Federal and State - level Requirements:Although there are no specific measurement regulations for charging piles at the federal level in the US, some states such as California and New York have started to implement their own standards and requirements. These standards mainly focus on the measurement accuracy of charging services and consumer protection.
2、ANSI标准：The ANSI C12 series of standards issued by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), especially ANSI C12.1 - 2008 and ANSI C12.20 - 2015, are widely used for the performance evaluation of electricity meters. Although these standards were originally designed for traditional electricity meters, their requirements for the measurement performance and accuracy of electric energy are also applicable to the measurement systems of electric vehicle charging piles.
Electricity Meter Testing and Certification:In the US, the electricity meter part of the charging pile needs to pass specific tests to verify that its measurement performance complies with ANSI standards. This usually includes accuracy tests, environmental adaptability tests, and durability tests. Charging piles that pass the tests can obtain corresponding certification marks, proving that they meet the measurement requirements of the US market.

Differentiated Comparative Analysis

Although the measurement standards of the mainstream international target markets are basically transformed and adopted based on the IEC 62053 series of standards, according to the actual situations of different countries and regions, there are differences in the requirements of standard items for the specific applications of charging pile equipment. This requires enterprises to pay close attention to the latest laws, regulations, corresponding standards, and measurement parameter indicators of the importing place when exporting charging piles to ensure that the exported products meet the requirements of the importing country.