What AFIR Compliance Means for Energy & Utility Companies
Read Time:10minutes
Jul 10, 2025
EV charging is becoming a core business area for energy companies across Europe, and two major EU policies are accelerating this shift:
The Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) and the rise of Energy Communities. Both bring new compliance requirements and open the door to growth in EV infrastructure.
If you're an energy or utility company exploring or expanding your services in EV charging, our practical guide to EV charging for energy companies gives the big picture.
This article focuses on how AFIR and Energy Communities create concrete opportunities for utility-driven EV charging services.
AFIR requirements for EV charging in Europe
AFIR is the EU’s new regulation for EV charging infrastructure. It sets binding targets for Member States and directly affects public charging operators. It also applies to any energy or utility company operating or enabling public EV charging services.
To meet AFIR compliance, the charging infrastructure must include:
Roaming access across networks, enabling interoperability
Open payments through contactless cards or mobile wallets without registration
Minimum uptime requirements to guarantee charging availability
Standard communication protocols, including OCPP and OCPI
Timeline Highlights
2025: High-power charging requirements start along the TEN-T core network
2027–2030: Targets increase for coverage, station performance, and service continuity
Energy companies building or supporting EV charging must align with these expectations. Delays in adopting the required technologies can block access to future projects or public funding.
Can energy communities run EV charging stations?
Under the EU’s Renewable Energy Directives (RED II and III), Energy Communities can produce, manage, and distribute energy locally. They are also allowed to develop EV charging infrastructure, especially in residential zones, rural areas, and locations with grid constraints.
This creates a new channel for energy companies to:
Provide white-label EV charging solutions for local use
Offer billing, monitoring, and energy data services
Enable smart charging and load balancing through embedded APIs
Energy Communities often receive local and EU-level funding. They are growing quickly and looking for technology and energy partners to support their charging rollouts.
What happens if energy companies ignore AFIR rules?
Waiting to act increases the risk of being excluded from the next wave of charging infrastructure.
Public incentives tied to AFIR compliance may be missed
Local and regional charging networks may grow without your services or technology
Technical standards will become mandatory, and retrofitting non-compliant systems will come at a higher cost
The EV charging landscape in Europe is moving forward on a fixed regulatory schedule. Delaying adaptation will limit future options.
How can eMabler help with AFIR compliance?
eMabler helps energy companies meet compliance and launch EV charging solutions quickly.
Our API-first platform supports all major requirements under current EU regulations.
We offer:
Full compatibility with OCPP, OCPI, and ISO 15118
Ready-made integration with roaming networks and payment systems
White-label and co-branded EV charging capabilities
Scalable backend infrastructure with monitoring and analytics
Our platform makes it simple to serve new markets, partner with communities, and keep charging services reliable and compliant.
Take Action Now
AFIR and the Energy Community framework are reshaping EV charging across Europe.
Energy and utility companies that act now can take the lead in building smart, connected, and community-driven charging services.
eMabler gives you the tools to do it fast. Our API-first EV charging platform connects your infrastructure to roaming networks, supports AFIR-compliant standards, powers open payments, and enables white-label charging for energy communities.
Let’s talk about how your company can scale EV charging with full compliance, faster rollout, and lower complexity!
