Market-leading chargers. Sustainably powered.
We do more than provide fast, reliable charging stations which accept multiple payment methods. We create a comfortable experience, one that ‘feels’ Osprey, that our customers remember, talk to others about, and want to experience again and again. We are independent of all charge point manufacturers and install the right EV charger for each site, matching the charging speed to the dwell time.
What affects your EV charging speed?
You would be forgiven for finding charging rates a little confusing, it’s a tricky subject to get your head around. But fear not, we have the low-down on what you should look out for when your EV charging speeds aren’t quite what you expected during a public charging session.
With the various factors coming from both vehicle and the infrastructure, we want to shed light on all of these elements so you can walk away feeling confident when you next use a rapid charger.
Infrastructure Limits
Now we will look at the ways charging infrastructure set up affects the max possible charge rate your car can draw from a charge point.
Cable limits
The cables installed at a charge point can affect the maximum possible charge rate. The cable that delivers the power from the charger to your EV needs to be of a suitable size. A balance is required between being large enough in diameter to allow enough power to flow easily, but not too large to then require considerable amounts of heating and electrical insulation that will then cause the cable to be too heavy and rigid and thus unusable. It is also worth noting that even where the highest capability cable is installed, such as at Osprey’s dynamic load-sharing hubs with Kempower technology, most vehicle batteries will still charge at a slightly lower rate than the maximum possible compared to that which could be achieved on an 800V car due to the majority of cars on the road today being 400V.
Grid capacity
Grid capacity is dependent on the high voltage infrastructure and how it is linked to the primary substations in the area. At Osprey, we always secure a greater amount of grid than required for the number of chargers at a site.
Another important factor that we always consider is selecting the correct chargers for the site based on dwell time as well as the available grid. We demonstrate this with our en-route sites where we install high-powered chargers due to the shorter dwell time. However, if we install chargers at a site with many amenities and a longer dwell time, then we opt for more chargers of lower power in these locations to complement your shopping needs and maximise the number and availability of charge points.
Charger set-up (power sharing)
The way a charging site is set up can also affect the max charge rate. ‘Power sharing’ can be used across charging sites to maximise grid connections when site restrictions apply. One simple way to share power is to allow for dual charging on a single charge point. When one car is using the charger, the load is maximised (eg. 50kW). However, if another car were to plug into the same charger, this charge rate is then split between the two vehicles (25kW each).
Osprey do not set up charging sites like this, because it becomes unclear for the customer what maximum rate of charge they can get from the charger. Instead, you may have heard about our dynamic load-balancing hubs, which maximise available power to the cars plugged in in real-time.
Raption 50
Charge rate up to 50kW
Additional AC port for Type 2 charging up to 22kW
A 40kWh Nissan Leaf will take 41 minutes to charge
A Tesla Model 3 Long Range will take 66 mins to charge
A Jaguar I-PACE will take 75 minutes to charge
How to use our chargers.
Tap, plug, charge.
No membership is required to charge with us. You can use any contactless debit or credit bank card. For regular users of the network we have the Osprey App. Simply choose your payment method (contactless, app or RFID), select your connector (CCS or CHAdeMO) and plug your car in.