The Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion and modernisation of the EV charging network over the coming years.
EV infrastructure standards are mandated through European regulations, the ITS Directive, the Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation, and Irish legislation and regulations.
The Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) has been in force since 13 April 2024 and is an important part of the EU’s Fit for 55 policy package to reduce EU emissions by 55% by 2030 and make the EU climate-neutral by 2050.
The Regulation establishes mandatory minimum alternative fuels infrastructure targets and obligations, to ensure that a sufficient and interoperable recharging and refuelling infrastructure network is in place across EU Member States.
AFIR sets targets and timeframes for the deployment of infrastructure in urban nodes and across the main transport corridors in each Member State (the Trans-European Network-Transport network (TEN-T), including electric vehicle recharging infrastructure for light- and heavy-duty vehicles.
National targets under AFIR take the form of publicly available charging capacity (kw) on the network, rather than a national target for the number of EV chargepoints. A minimum number of high powered chargepoints are also to be provided on the Ten-T core and comprehensive networks under AFIR, and ZEVI and TII have put in place tender processes to deliver these charging requirements on the national road network. The Department of Transport reports to the EU annually on progress under the AFIR.
The National EV Charging Infrastructure Strategy sets out the ambition and strategy for the delivery of a national EV charging network across the country that will meet users' needs, and includes the practical steps to deliver this network and AFIR infrastructure targets. This strategy is currently being revised with a refreshed strategy for 2026-2028 to be published for consultation in the coming months.
ZEVI is developing a Data Strategy that will, once in place, enhance the Department’s ability to monitor this infrastructure. The system will enable the collection of data from charge-points in near real time and provide it on an Open Data basis.
