Maingau pricing update surprises not because of Ionity
The year 2020 started with a big bang. The biggest public international fast charging network of Europe announced a new pricing scheme. Until today, one company “didn’t care about money” and had an incredible price per kWh (still going for August). The Ionity update was to be expected, Maingau is increasing general pricing though. Is the market growing up?
UPDATE, April 2021: this feels like an old story now, in 2021. Better check the new blog(s) about EnBW & Fastned, or better yet the Cheap Fast Charging page.
The inevitable price change
It had to happen, it was always a matter of when. What I didn’t see coming is that Maingau will raise overall pricing. On top of that they will increase the Ionity fee (to levels still below Ionity’s own kWh-based-price).
Yesterday’s announcement shakes the world for a lot of people (driving EV’s). Anywhere in Europe, this impacts travelers right when they want to jump on the opportunity of a (longer) trip. Maingau now joins most other charging card companies in asking an extra fee when DC charging.
People in The Netherlands use Maingau at Fastned all the time (which has better coverage than anyone in the country). I suppose Fastned will start selling more Gold memberships soon!
Head over to their webpage to find out the new tariff that Maingau or Einfachstromladen has just announced.
What does this mean for your roadtrip?
That you need to get organized! You can filter on different charging networks when planning. You could take a look at my Cheap Fastcharging page to see what other offers are available elsewhere. You can always get in touch and request a personalized EV travel plan, where you decide on time & money. If you use alternative networks, your ride might be slower (charging queues, slower speeds and so on) but cheaper as well.
The real news
Nothing changes really. Maingau is still delivering a super competitive charging card. Which should tell you something. Of course people love to charge up on the cheap, so do I. Is it sustainable though? It’s a miracle to me that Maingau kept pricing low for so long.
I hope the world of EV survives and it can only do so if the right fees are paid. DC charging is not always necessary and should be used when on the road. Can you still do that? I think so!
Maingau and Ionity
Till September first, an amazing combination for anyone on the road.
The “new winner” is an old friend, Chargepoint (on September first) takes the #1 spot at my Ionity pricing page. If you live in Germany, you can sign up for EWE Go. I don’t expect them to last, but rumour has it their charging card works at Ionity for less than 50 cents/kWh. Check it out!
Fast charging, can it be affordable?
Competition is key here. In many markets this is already happening. Look at fast charging around Norway, Ionity is only a “small” player there. Look at the UK: “Big Oil” is expanding on a daily basis with (cheap!) fast chargers! You’re never out of options, wherever you are. Strangely enough the biggest impact is in France. Where Ionity is sort of the only trustworthy player in the game (right now). Let’s hope for sustainable growth! Fastned come on! Allego build that French network!
Bon voyage!
Before I forget: I would like to thank Maingau for all the charging sessions, simple pricing is and always will be the way to go.