Charging Infrastructure in Focus: 4 Perspectives from Experts

In the run-up to the 5th Chargetec Conference, which takes place on 27 and 28 May 2025 at the SZ Tower in Munich, we spoke with selected speakers and members of the advisory board about key topics in charging infrastructure. The specialist conference will cover, among other things, bidirectional charging, automated and inductive charging, high-performance and megawatt charging, as well as regulatory frameworks.

To obtain a current opinion from practice, we interviewed four prominent industry voices:

• Dr. Lioudmila Simon, VP eMobility Innovation at E.ON Group Innovation,
• Thomas Nindl, Managing Director at Brusa Elektronik,
• Peter Gresch, Owner of PGUB Management Consultants and Chairman of the Advisory Board,
• and Marcel Hessel, Head of Charging at MAN Truck & Bus.

All four received the same questions - their answers paint a complex picture of opportunities, challenges, and necessary changes in the field of charging infrastructure and electromobility.

Bidirectional Charging is a promising solution with hurdles

Bidirectional charging refers to the ability of electric vehicles not only to draw power from the grid but also to feed it back into the grid when needed - in both directions. This makes the vehicle an active component in the energy system - a mobile energy storage and manager. The respondents agree that bidirectional charging has enormous potential - both technically and economically. Marcel Hessel (MAN Truck & Bus) sees it as a "key technology for relieving power grids," especially in the area of heavy commercial vehicles. 

Lioudmila Simon (E.ON Group Innovation) speaks of a "swarm battery" of thousands of networked vehicles, with which "megawatt-hour storage capacity can be created - a huge lever." This allows electricity to be flexibly buffered and the grid stabilised.

Thomas Nindl (Brusa Elektronik) also emphasises the relevance - but from the perspective of wireless charging. A continuously connected vehicle that automatically takes in or gives off energy "as the grid allows or demands," is, in his view, the next logical step in mobility development.

Peter Gresch (PGUB Management Consultants) expresses a much more critical view: He doubts that bidirectional charging will become widespread on a large scale. Although he also cites specific advantages - such as Vehicle to Home (V2H) applications with PV electricity or the grid service potential via Vehicle to Grid (V2G) - he warns of high investments, increased battery wear due to constant charging and discharging, and insufficient availability of the required technology. 

His scepticism is based on real economic hurdles: "For many consumers, it is not yet worthwhile - neither technically nor financially." In addition, "many regulations are still missing, which makes many consumers hesitate and delays or prevents mass adoption." He therefore concludes: "I am rather sceptical that bidirectional charging will become widespread and really needed in the long term, for example for grid stabilisation."

China: Competitive pressure or innovation driver?

On the subject of China, there is a remarkable differentiation among the experts surveyed - both in the assessment of the threat situation and in the proposed reactions.

Thomas Nindl views the discussion about cheap imports from China with relative calm. He believes state intervention is unnecessary if the economic conditions are right. From his perspective, the market should regulate itself through price-performance: "The electricity and purchase price for a vehicle must be incentive enough to buy. If both costs are attractive compared to petrol/diesel, then there is no need for a purchase subsidy or fear of cheap cars from China."

Peter Gresch also fundamentally argues against protectionist measures. For him, it is clear that markets cannot be sealed off with tariffs or bans. Instead, Europe must convince through its own strength - particularly through innovative and CO₂-efficient vehicle and drive concepts: "We must drive innovations forward, face the competition. There is no way around significant CO₂ reduction - despite short-term counter-movements." German and European car manufacturers, in particular, must launch new, competitive vehicle and drive projects again so that they and their suppliers are strengthened once more.

Marcel Hessel shifts the focus to corporate structures: The Traton Group, which includes MAN, has already drawn concrete consequences from the current market dynamics. To respond faster and more efficiently to global challenges, the R&D departments of the brands have been merged into a cross-brand organisation. The goal is to bring sustainable and connected transport solutions to market maturity more cost-effectively with the modular Traton System.

Lioudmila Simon focuses on the perspective of end customers. Electromobility must convince them primarily through reliability and affordability - regardless of the origin of the vehicle: "Trust, because we must absolutely rely on the availability of charging stations with electric cars. And affordability, because both drivers of electric cars and operators of stations expect the lowest possible costs."

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Benjamin Müller

Regulation of charging infrastructure

After the responses on the topic of China went in several directions, there is once again great unanimity among the experts on the topic of charging infrastructure and regulations. The short version: The need for action is high, the challenges clearly identifiable.

Peter Gresch, PGUB Management Consultants, criticises the current situation as confusing and consumer-unfriendly. He particularly criticises the multitude of charging cards and billing systems, which are non-transparent and impractical for users: "For Europe, we need uniform framework conditions and regulations. There are still too many local, municipal charging solutions [...] and no 'roaming' like with mobile phones with more uniform tariffs and predictable costs."

Thomas Nindl, Brusa Elektronik, highlights that there are currently no national or international regulations on the topic of bidirectionality - and in this context also calls for a reduction in roaming costs: "There are many approaches to the topic of bidirectionality but no national or international regulations yet [...]. In addition, the roaming costs of the CPOs must fall, similar to the mobile network operators about ten years ago."

Marcel Hessel, MAN Truck & Bus, formulates a number of specific demands on politics when asked about urgently needed changes. These include, among other things, forward-looking network expansion, secured financing of the fast-charging infrastructure for trucks, purchase incentives for e-trucks, and investment security for companies. He particularly emphasizes the importance of political prioritization: "The new federal government should place the development of charging infrastructure in the 'overriding public interest'."

Lioudmila Simon, E.ON Group Innovation, also calls for "reliable political framework conditions for the ramp-up of electromobility". She makes it clear that bidirectional charging can only be economically integrated if a technical and regulatory basis is created. Furthermore, she emphasizes the need for open standards for communication between vehicle, charging point, grid, and backend - as well as tax relief for stored electricity: "A prerequisite is the availability of solutions based on common, open standards [...]. In addition, it is important to exempt the electricity stored in the vehicle battery from taxes, levies, and charges."

Now structure is needed

The trend report shows: According to the experts, the industry is technologically ahead of legislation. The ideas for bidirectional charging are well-developed but not yet ready for mass adoption. In the global competition, innovation and system understanding are at the forefront. What unites everyone: The charging infrastructure is the backbone of electromobility - and must be taken seriously politically, economically, and technologically.

This article was first published at all-electronics.de

Chargetec 2025

27-28 May 2025, SZ Munich Tower