Prague plans to build 1500 EV chargers, will apply for a subsidy

Prague plans to build 1500 public chargers for electric vehicles, some on streetlights and others on standalone posts. The city plans to secure roughly half of the total cost of about CZK 407.3 million excluding VAT from a subsidy scheme launched by the Transport Ministry. City councillors approved the subsidy application today. According to Deputy Mayor for Transport Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates), the chargers should be installed from next year through 2027.

“This is a significant contribution to ensuring that electric mobility is genuinely accessible to everyone in the future, and does not remain a privilege reserved for people who have their own garage and can charge their electric vehicle there cheaply. After all, charging at fast-charging stations will always be relatively expensive by its very nature,” Hřib said.

The city expects the number of electric vehicles in Prague to rise to as many as 180,000 by 2030, creating a need for around 4,500 charging points.

Of the 1500 chargers being built with subsidy funds, about 900 will be standalone units and the remaining 600 will be installed on streetlights, which the city is gradually adapting for this purpose, the deputy mayor said. Installing charging stations requires new cables to be connected to the streetlights, with sufficient capacity to supply power to both the light and the charger. Last year, the city-owned company Technologie hlavního města Prahy adapted 113 streetlights in this way, according to earlier information, and plans to adapt another 239 this year.

The city has so far fitted the upgraded streetlights with chargers on a trial basis in Vinohrady, where the city-owned company installed 13 charging stations with a total of 25 charging points at the end of 2022. Last week, councillors also approved the installation of EV chargers at ten park-and-ride (P+R) car parks and two underground garages. City Hall plans to select an operator for the municipal charging network through a concession tender.