Under the pressure of climate crisis and environmental protection, the Vietnamese government is vigorously supporting the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry, but the lagging charging infrastructure has become a core bottleneck. Data shows that Vietnam's electric vehicle sales will reach 90,000 in 2024, a surge of 2.5 times from 2023. It is expected that the number of electric vehicles in Vietnam will exceed 1 million in 2030 and may reach 3.5 million in 2040. However, the International Energy Agency (IEA) warns that Vietnam needs to build 100,000 to 350,000 charging stations (about 10:1 vehicle-charging pile ratio) in the next 15 years to support this growth.

Fast Charging Technology & Battery Impact: A Brief Overview



Fast charging technology enables rapid energy replenishment for electric vehicle batteries by increasing charging current or voltage, significantly reducing downtime. However, this convenience comes with challenges. Lithium-ion batteries rely on the shuttle of lithium ions between electrodes during charging/discharging. Fast charging forces ions to rush back to the anode’s graphite layer, but limited surface area can cause congestion, leading some ions to deposit as metallic lithium on the anode—a process called lithium plating. This phenomenon risks battery degradation, highlighting the need for careful balancing between charging speed and long-term battery health.

Finished oil sales companies are facing the challenge of rapidly increasing market penetration of new energy vehicles, with the proportion of new energy vehicles soaring from 5.8% in 2020 to 47% in 2024. At the same time, the number of charging piles has also increased significantly, resulting in fierce competition in the charging market, rising land costs, and declining subsidies. New entrants are facing cost pressure. In order to meet the challenges, finished oil sales companies need to optimize the construction of charging stations from three aspects: layout design, facility selection, and construction technology to achieve low-cost development. In terms of layout, land utilization should be improved, cable and facility layout should be optimized, and investment should be reduced; in terms of facility selection, transformers, charging piles, and charging guns should be reasonably configured to avoid overload risks and reduce capacity expansion costs. Overall, finished oil sales companies should follow the investment principles of rigor, precision, and efficiency to alleviate the cost pressure of charging network construction and operation.

According to the latest research by the German Automobile Club (ADAC), electric vehicles (EV) have significantly surpassed traditional fuel vehicles (ICE) in terms of reliability. This conclusion is based on a detailed analysis of 3.6 million vehicle failures. Data shows that the failure rate of EVs registered in 2020-2022 was 4.2 times per thousand, which is only 40% of ICE vehicles (10.4 times/thousand). Although the absolute number of EV rescue requests has reached a new high, it only accounts for 1.2% of the total failures.

Orderly charging is an intelligent management mode that guides and regulates the charging behavior of electric vehicles through economic or technical means, aiming to balance the load of the power grid, improve charging efficiency and reduce electricity costs. Its core lies in dynamically adjusting the charging time and power according to the load of the power grid, fluctuations in electricity prices and user needs, achieving "peak shaving and valley filling" and avoiding the peak overload problem of the power grid caused by traditional disorderly charging.

Core Guide to Charging Station Management and Maintenance in Summer
During the high temperature flood season, charging stations need to ensure stable operation through refined maintenance:

Heat dissipation and dust removal: Regularly clean the dust screen and fan filter at the inlet/outlet of the charging pile to ensure ventilation and heat dissipation, extend the life of the equipment and improve efficiency.
Charging gun and power line management: Keep the gun head dry after heavy rain and return it to prevent damage; check the aging and poor contact of the power line, and operate after cutting off the power.
Double protection for flood prevention and fire prevention:
Check drainage facilities before the flood and prepare sufficient flood prevention materials; clean up the accumulated water in the pile after the rain and replace the damp parts.
Configure ABC dry powder fire extinguishers, regularly check fireproof mud, strictly prohibit the storage of flammable materials, and post safety tips.
Emergency response: Clear the drainage pipes before typhoons and rainstorms, use sandbags to protect equipment and cut off power when water accumulates; thoroughly dry the pile after rain and test the insulation performance.
Daily inspection reinforcement: Focus on inspections during the early morning hours, strictly prohibit car washing/repairs during charging, and prohibit the stacking of debris around the station.
Through the above measures, we can effectively cope with the challenges of high temperature, high load and extreme weather, and ensure the safe and efficient operation of charging stations.

This article is a brief analysis of the investment plan for charging piles: it is recommended to configure a 630kVA box-type transformer (protection level IP54 and above), equipped with 5 120kW charging piles, with an initial investment of approximately RMB 455,000 (excluding site rental). In terms of operation, based on an average daily usage of 6 hours and a service fee of RMB 0.4/kWh, the annual net profit can reach RMB 343,000, with a payback period of 1.3 years in an optimistic scenario and approximately 2.6 years in a conservative estimate. Core risks include losses due to utilization rates of less than 50%, fluctuations in electricity price policies, and expansion approval costs. Income can be optimized by selecting high-traffic areas, implementing time-of-use electricity prices, and applying for government subsidies. This solution is suitable for scenarios such as commercial areas or highway service areas, and the investment strategy needs to be adjusted in combination with local policies and operational efficiency.

The site selection of community charging stations requires comprehensive consideration of multiple factors to achieve efficient operation and user coverage. The first principle is geographical location, giving priority to densely populated commercial areas, transportation hubs or office concentrations with mature supporting facilities to ensure high traffic and convenience, while avoiding areas with complex road conditions to reduce the difficulty of user arrival. In terms of land resources, it is necessary to ensure that the site has sufficient parking spaces and clear property rights (such as industrial/commercial land), and give priority to self-owned land or long-term leases (≥5 years), while avoiding non-construction land such as agricultural land.

The power module is the "super charging heart" of the electric vehicle charging pile. Its core functions cover three dimensions: efficient power conversion, intelligent safety regulation and full life cycle cost optimization.

Overview and prospects of the global electric vehicle marketBy 2024, the global electric vehicle (EV) ownership will reach 42 million, with China accounting for half of the total with 23.4 million. In 2023, the global EV registration volume will reach 14.8 million, with China contributing more than 9 million, and the EU (2.5 million) and the United States (1.5 million) ranking second and third. The International Energy Agency predicts that global EV sales will reach 17 million in 2024, accounting for more than 20% of total automobile sales, of which China's market share is expected to reach 45%, Europe and the United States will account for 25% and 11% respectively.

As the world's largest oil producer, Saudi Arabia is promoting economic diversification through strategic investment in the electric vehicle industry chain, aiming to seize the opportunity of clean energy transformation and establish a core position in the global green transportation field.

The electric drive system of new energy vehicles is composed of two core modules, "big three electrics" and "small three electrics", which together build the vehicle's power network and energy management system. Among them, the "big three electrics" as the power heart and control center are composed of high-energy density battery packs, permanent magnet synchronous drive motors and intelligent electronic control systems: the battery pack achieves single-cell voltage balancing and thermal management through the BMS management system, and IP67-level protection ensures safety in all road conditions; the drive motor achieves instant conversion of electrical energy to kinetic energy by electromagnetic induction principle, and has both strong power and high efficiency and energy saving characteristics; the electronic control system, as the nerve center, relies on real-time algorithms to accurately control power output and coordinate various components to achieve millisecond-level response.

The "small three-electric" system focuses on energy conversion and distribution, and includes three key components: the onboard charger (OBC) achieves efficient charging from AC to DC through intelligent rectification technology, supports fast charging protocols to shorten the charging time; the DC/DC converter builds a high-voltage to low-voltage power bridge to provide a stable low-voltage power supply for on-board electronic equipment; the high-voltage power distribution box (PDU) as a power hub, while completing the precise distribution of high-voltage DC, integrates the over-current short-circuit dual protection mechanism to build a safety barrier for the vehicle's high-voltage system.