Car charging network grows, but the South and motorways remain critical nodes

The recharging network in Italy is growing and the equipment along the national road network is improving, as shown by the latest report by Motus-E, an association of e-mobility operators. The recharging points on the motorway network reach 1,159, "with 45% of motorway service areas equipped with infrastructure", so one in two. A total of 67,561 points are installed in Italy.

Motus-E's monitoring, as of 30 June 2025, shows that installed public charging points have increased by 10,569 over the 12 months and by 1,569 in the second quarter of the year alone. Of the 1,159 motorway charging points, 49 of which are in the process of being activated, 85 per cent are of the fast, DC type, and 62 per cent exceed 150 kW of power. "This is significant growth compared to the 963 active points in June 2024 and 657 in June 2023," Motus-E comments.

"Thanks to the commitment of the operators, the Italian recharging infrastructure continues to expand and, in particular, the situation on the motorways has improved considerably, making it possible today to travel electrically along the country's main arteries," emphasises President Fabio Pressi, who does not, however, hide the great work that still needs to be done. There are two weak points in the Italian recharging network: capillarity, with reference to the south of Italy, and the great road network. On the subject of the electric infrastructure on motorways, 'it is essential that tenders be launched as soon as possible to assign recharging services on the sections that are lagging behind,' urges Pressi.

Motus-E director Francesco Naso clarifies one point: 'On Italian motorways, we are halfway there, but there are still entire concessions that are not covered, for example the A24, which only has low-power points, and the Milano Serravalle'. In September, the association will present a manifesto in support of the development of the public charging system, 'to focus on and overcome the nodes that make it difficult to expand the network in Italy'. At the heart of the issue are the high prices at which energy is purchased and the incidence of fixed costs, which become very burdensome when the number of recharges is still low.

Italy remains at the bottom of the ranking of European countries in terms of penetration of full-electric models, with a 5.2% share of registrations in the first six months of the year, up more than 27% compared to 2024, but still about a third of the EU average. If plug-ins are also included in the calculation, the share rises to 10.5% with a growth trend of 40% in the first six months, thanks in part to the boost from the new taxation for fringe benefit cars. The low number of bev cars on the road contributes to keeping the density of recharging points in relation to vehicles on the road at a good level, amounting to one public access for every five electric cars.