Badenova scales e-mobility infrastructure across the South Baden region with ChargePoint software 

Badenova is the largest regional energy supplier in the southern Baden region of Germany and a driving force behind the energy and heating transition. Based in Freiburg im Breisgau, it has been actively shaping the transformation of energy supply since its founding in 2001. Together with over 90 cities and municipalities as municipal shareholders, Badenova develops sustainable solutions for a secure, climate-friendly and efficient energy and heating infrastructure.

With a focus on being an all-in-one energy partner for their customers, it was only natural that Badenova committed to expanding into EV charging. 

Their goal in e-mobility became clear: be the partner who can deliver everything customers need — not just public infrastructure, but a full-service model that empowers municipalities, industrial and commercial clients, housing providers and logistics companies to build, operate and grow their own charging offers. By doing so, Badenova supports its customers by being their qualified point of contact for everything related to e-mobility.  

The early challenge: Momentum without ease  

In e-mobility’s early days, demand for EV charging arrived from many directions at once: municipalities asked for solutions, commercial customers explored options and expectations rose quickly. Badenova initially operated with multiple backends in parallel, and while the market was clearly ramping up, the team needed a platform that would simplify the messy middle — roaming, payments and public availability — without burdening customers or internal teams.

The challenges of the past remain, but with new concerns to accompany them. Peers within the industry often struggle to procure terminals and juggle contracts with payment providers. Processes are complex, time-consuming and frustrating — hardly the foundation for a smooth customer experience.

The solution: One platform, one click, many possibilities 

In 2018, Badenova chose ChargePoint be.ENERGISED as the core of its operating model — a software platform that turns “complex and manual” into “automated and scalable.” With be.ENERGISED, Badenova could: 

• Make DC fast-charging and AC charging stations easily available to the public via roaming  
• Automate invoicing 
• Receive revenues for public sessions via roaming without wrestling with a mix of contracts 

Practically, this roaming capability meant something powerful: press a button, the station goes public and revenue flows. The team describes it as a “huge added value,” especially compared to the heavy lift many others face within the industry.  

The platform also supports cloud-based AFIR-compliant OCPI payment terminals (e.g., CCV, Scheidt & Bachmann), which operate hardware-agnostically and can therefore be combined with different charging station hardware. These terminals enable true ad hoc (no app, no RFID required) card payments all while keeping charging and invoicing logic centralized and managed in the backend. According to the Badenova e-mobility team, it’s as simple as “We get a terminal, we install it and it works. No contracts with payment providers at all, which is another added benefit for us.”

But it wasn’t only the roaming and seamless EV charging payments that created a lasting collaboration. As an added value, strong, responsive support with their ChargePoint contact turned software into partnership, keeping projects moving and teams confident.

Why ChargePoint 

Badenova’s continued partnership with ChargePoint can be accredited to the following: 

• Roaming that just works: Automated processes to make sites public and settle revenue with minimal overhead. 
• Card payments without the circus: Cloud-based OCPI terminals mean no maze of separate payment-provider contracts; install and go. 
• Scale & reliability: A mature CPMS that centralizes logic and supports a growing multisite, multistakeholder footprint. 
• Service mindset: Fast, reliable human support that meets Badenova’s full-service commitment to customers.  

Scaling success through ease of use 

Today, as a regional CPO, Badenova operates 600+ charging points in the commercial sector, manages around 350 public charging points and serves around 40+ businesses within the ChargePoint environment— all while maintaining a model that empowers customers to build and run what they need with a trusted partner at their side. Their utilisation continues to increase, and the deployment of terminals has been smooth, predictable and appreciated by field teams and customers alike.  

Looking ahead 

As Badenova looks toward a more sustainable future as an active participant in the nation-wide mission to be climate neutral by 2035, they hope to increase their number of charging stations and customers. Specifically, their goal is to deepen their footprint in fast-charging infrastructure for logistics and trucking.  

With ChargePoint by their side, the path forward is about scaling what already works: reliable roaming, simple payments and a full-service partnership that keeps pace with evolving customer needs across municipalities, industry, housing and logistics. ChargePoint be.ENERGISED will be there every “station” along the way.