Charging infrastructure is almost always discussed as an investment -- but what does it cost not to have it? We count on lost tenants, foregone revenue and what it actually costs to wait.
Charging infrastructure is almost always discussed as an investment. But there is another calculation that is rarely made: what does it cost your property to not have charging? As every third new car rolled out on Swedish roads is an electric car, tenants' expectations are changing — and properties that don't keep up risk empty premises, lost revenue and costly refurbishment under time pressure.
A few years ago, electric car charging was a bonus that attracted occasional renters. Today, that is an increasingly clear expectation -- and soon a requirement.
According to Traffic analysis official statistics For 2025, 61 percent of all newly registered passenger cars in Sweden were rechargeable. Pure-electric cars accounted for 36.5 percent of new car registrations -- roughly 95,000 vehicles during the year. The total stock of electric cars is expected to exceed 500,000 in 2026.
This means that a growing percentage of employees, customers and visitors who use your property's parking are driving electric cars or plug-in hybrids. They need to recharge. And if they can't charge at your place, it weighs heavily when the contract is up for renewal.
For office and commercial properties, this is no longer a hygiene factor for the future — it is a competitive parameter today.
It is easy to focus on the cost of installation and forget to compare it with the alternative: empty premises.
An office property with 50 parking spaces that installs six charging points invests approximately SEK 150,000. With a utilization rate of 450 kWh per outlet per month, and a mark-up of 2.50 SEK/kWh, the installation generates just over 11,000 SEK per month — and is repaid in about 13 months. It is ChargeNodes calculation based on data from over 60,000 charging points in operation.
But there's also a simpler comparison: a year of forgone charging revenue. The same property with six charging points generates more than SEK 135,000 over twelve months — more than the entire investment. Every year that the decision is postponed is thus a year of no return on an investment that is nevertheless inevitable.
Set that against the cost of a vacant premises for a couple of months -- lost rental income, brokerage fee and time -- and the calculus looks different. Anyone who wants to count on the specific conditions of their property will find ChargeNodes ROI calculator here.
A common objection to installing charging infrastructure is that the demand isn't there yet. ChargeNode's data shows that reasoning is backwards.
Based on follow-up of over 30,000 charging outlets installed before May 2024, ChargeNode's data shows that charging usage increases by 25-39 per cent within 12 months after installation. For real estate companies, the cut is 30 percent.
This is a so-called induction effect: the infrastructure accelerates electrification among those who use the property. An employee who knows that there is charging at work chooses electric car at the next car change. A tenant who knows the property is ready encourages his co-workers to do the same.
Charging infrastructure doesn't just meet existing demand — it creates new ones.
There is one more reason not to postpone the decision to the future: the legislation is moving.
Boverket's new regulations Based on the EU's updated Energy Performance Directive (EPBD), the requirements for charging infrastructure in commercial properties are tightened in two timescales:
This means that property owners who wait to act may be forced to carry out installation under time pressure and without the ability to plan cost-optimally. And without the opportunity to exploit Charge the Car Subsidy — which, since 1 February 2026, requires undertakings engaged in economic activity to apply before installation begins. You can read more about how ChargeNode works with Boverket's requirements in the blog Boverket requires smart charging from May 29.
The Load the Car grant from the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency provides:
For an office property that installs six charging points and qualifies as a small business, this means up to SEK 90,000 in support on an investment of SEK 150,000.
Companies and economic associations that carry out economic activities must apply before the installation starts — anyone who starts without an approved application misses out on the grant entirely. BRFs and associations that install exclusively for their own residents or members are not subject to this requirement. It's a direct cost of making the decision too late, and it should be lifted into the calculus when the timing of investment is discussed.
ChargeNode helps with application for both public and non-public charging stations free of charge — read more about our charging service here.
There is one dimension of charging infrastructure that is rarely counted in crowns: what the absence of charging signals to tenants and the market.
Commercial tenants — office companies, chain stores, service businesses — increasingly have their own sustainability goals and ESG requirements to address. A property without charging infrastructure is harder to justify internally, harder to include in sustainability reporting and harder to sell to employees and customers. In the blog Can charging be part of the environmental certification? we review how charging infrastructure has a concrete impact on the sustainability profile of the property.
It's not about electric car charging deciding every rental decision. But it is part of the picture of whether a property is modern and future-proofed — or not.
We install, deploy and manage the charging infrastructure for you — from design to billing and 24/7 support. With ChargeNodes centralized system architecture we pull cables to all parking lots from day one and activate charging units incrementally as demand grows. This means lower initial investment and full control over scalability.
Spring ROI Calculator gives you a tailored view of the payback period and revenue potential for your particular property — based on number of parking spaces, property type and utilization.
We also help with the application for the Charge the Car grant, free of charge.
The cost of installing charging infrastructure is known and calculable. The cost of not doing so -- in the form of lost tenants, forgone revenue, missed grants, and forced retooling under time pressure -- is often invisible until well realized. With Boverket's requirements in place and a grant program that requires early application, there is good reason to do the calculation now.
What does it cost to install electric car charging in an office property?
An office property with 50 parking spaces and six charging points can count on an investment of approximately SEK 150,000. With the Ladda Bilen grant, up to 50 percent of the cost can be covered for small businesses, reducing the net investment to SEK 75,000. The average payback period is 13 months based on ChargeNodes data.
Can tenants require the property owner to install charging?
The government has tabled a draft law (Ds 2025:13) which, if the Riksdag decides on it, is scheduled to enter into force on 29 May 2026. This means that tenants and property owners should be able to request permission to install a charging point at their car park — and that this may only be refused if there are serious and legitimate reasons. Nevertheless, for commercial property owners, it is more cost-effective to proactively offer a common charging solution than to manage individual installations retrospectively.
What happens if the property does not meet Boverket's requirements from 2027?
From 1 January 2027, retroactive requirements apply to existing premises with more than 20 parking spaces. Proprietà che non consente la risconnessione dei risconti risconti di installazione durante pressione tempo e senza l'abilità di planno costoptimalismo — e senza Charge la subsidy per il carro se l'applicazione non è stato presentato in tempo.
Do we need to search for the Load Car grant before the installation begins?
It depends on who you are. Since February 1, 2026, companies and economic associations engaged in economic activities must submit applications to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency before the installation work begins. BRFs and communities that install charging exclusively for their own residents or members — and do not offer charging to external tenants or the general public — are exempt from the prior application requirement.
How fast can charging usage increase after installation?
ChargeNode's data from over 30,000 charging outlets shows that charging usage increases by 25-39 percent within 12 months of installation. That's because access to charging accelerates the adoption of electric cars among those who use the property -- a so-called induction effect.
Charge Node Europe AB
Neongatan 4B
431 53 Molndal
