SNCF aims to build 5,000 charging points for its corporate fleet in France

This three-way partnership aims to gradually equip SNCF’s various sites with charging infrastructure, enabling the electrification of its service and pool vehicles. The rollout has been underway for several months. While the partners have not specified a completion date for the full installation of the 5,000 charging points, Eiffage and Virta will be responsible for the installation, operation, and maintenance of the infrastructure for at least six years. Against this backdrop, the partners have now formalised a strategic cooperation agreement.

“We designed a tailor-made solution with Eiffage Énergie Systèmes to offer a turnkey package including design, configuration, supply, installation, operation and maintenance of the charge points as well as management and support for end-customers,” confirmed Brendan Shepard, Sales Team Lead at Virta.

As part of this large-scale project, 105 charging points have already been commissioned across France at SNCF’s administrative buildings and technical centres, with an additional 34 currently under construction. “Most chargers are Alfen Double models, tailored to the operator’s requirements,” Virta states. The project also includes the integration of existing charging points, such as 20 Schneider charging stations previously installed at a site in Saint-Denis.

The client for this project is SNCF Immobilier, a subsidiary of SNCF. According to Virta, it has opted for a launch contract that includes fleet management. As a result, drivers of company vehicles can charge for free. At selected sites, particularly in north-western France and the Greater Paris area, SNCF employees are also permitted to charge their private vehicles at the charging stations at a discounted rate.

With this initiative, SNCF is preparing for France’s Mobility Orientation Law (Loi d’orientation des mobilités, or ‘LOM’), which was adopted in 2019 and aims to accelerate the expansion of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles in public networks and private car parks. Since 1 January 2025, companies with more than 20 parking spaces must equip five per cent of their spaces with charging stations. Additionally, the law requires companies with a fleet of over 100 vehicles to transition 50 per cent of their fleet to low-emission vehicles by 2030.

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This article was first published by Cora Werwitzke for electrive’s German edition.