Charging Service Regulation (“Regulation”) published in the Official Gazette on 02/04/2022 and entered into force on the same date; It covers the procedures and principles regarding the establishment and operation of charging units and charging stations, the establishment of a charging network, the licensing of charging network operators and the regulation of their activities, the rights and obligations of charging network operators and charging station operators and users, and the establishment and operation of a free access platform. The regulation does not include mobile charging units that provide electrical energy for roadside assistance to electric vehicles.
Until 02/08/2022, it is necessary for the persons providing charging service to adapt their status to this Regulation, and this information note has been prepared so that the readers can obtain detailed information about the Regulation.
According to the regulation, opening a charging station in the next period is only possible if a charging network operator license is obtained, and the charging network operator license is obtained from the Energy Market Regulatory Authority (“Authority”) and this license cannot be transferred under any circumstances. However:
- Transfer of the liabilities of the license holder legal entity to another legal entity through merger or division,
- Transfer process of granting a license as a continuation of the previous one, if the Banks request a license to another legal person (provided that the licensee undertakes all the obligations under the license) by giving a reasoned notification to the Authority, and the reasons are approved by the Energy Market Regulatory Board (“Board”). not counted.
Licensee legal entities operating in the electricity market and whose tariffs are regulated cannot apply for a charging network operator license, cannot provide charging services, and if it is determined that charging network operation is carried out in the market in violation of the provisions of the relevant legislation, the sanctions specified in the Electricity Market Law are applied to the relevant person.
How to Apply for a License?
To obtain a license; The authorized person of the legal person submits his information to the Agency in writing, and the Agency makes an application through the EMRB Application System with the information and documents to be submitted in accordance with the procedures and principles determined by the Agency, defining the electronic application authorization of the authorized person on behalf of the said legal person within five working days from the date of notification.
Legal person to apply for a license:
- Established as a joint stock company or limited liability company
- Except for the applications made by state economic enterprises, its minimum capital should not be less than 4,500,000,00 TL,
- In case of incorporation as a joint stock company, all of its shares, excluding those traded in the stock exchange, must be registered, and the company must not issue bearer shares, except for those to be traded in the stock exchange.
Whether the information and documents requested from the legal entity are submitted in accordance with the requirements during the application shall be completed within ten working days after they are submitted to the Institution. If deficiencies are detected in the applications, the deficiencies are requested to be corrected within fifteen working days and if the said deficiencies are not corrected, the application is deemed not made. The documents submitted to the Institute and the license fee are refunded.
The license application is finalized with the decision of the Board, a charging network operator license will be issued and the trade name, registered trademark and license period of the licensee legal person are announced on the website of the Authority. The license application is decided within thirty days at the latest and the license can be granted for a maximum of 49 years. The license period can be extended upon the request of the licensee, and the request for extension is made in the form of a license amendment application at the earliest nine months, at the latest three months before the end of the current license period, by applying to the Authority by the licensee.
The annual license fee is calculated by multiplying the net sales amount related to the charging service activity carried out within the scope of the license included in the annual income statements of the licensees and the coefficient to be determined each year by the Board, but the annual license fee is not charged for five years as of 01/01/2023.
License Amendment
The license can be amended at the request of the license holder or by the Authority ex officio. In the event that information registered in the license changes or if information needs to be added to or removed from the license, the license holder must apply to the Authority and request that the license be amended, within thirty days at the latest, following the occurrence of this situation or learning of it by the license holder.
The examination regarding the compliance of the information and documents requested during the license amendment application with the relevant legislation is completed within ten working days. It is requested that the deficiencies in the applications with deficiencies are corrected within ten working days, and if the said deficiencies are not corrected, the application is deemed not made.
License expiration
The license automatically terminates at the expiry of the license term, or:
- Finalization of the license holder’s bankruptcy,
- Termination of the licensee’s legal personality, except for the transfer of the rights and obligations of the licensee legal person under the license to another legal person through merger or division,
- Request of the licensee,
- When it is determined that the conditions for granting a license have been lost, and the situation is notified to the license holder, not submitting to the Authority that the condition has been re-established within thirty days,
- Non-fulfillment of the periodic obligations during the licensing phase,
- It is terminated by the decision of the Board in cases where the charging network cannot be established or maintained after it has been created.
The licensee is obliged to inform the charging station operators to which it has certified at least two months before the end of its activities and to inform the Authority. If the license expires, the certificates issued by the charging network operator automatically lose their validity.
Rights and Obligations of the Licensee
The charging network operator establishes the charging network consisting of at least fifty charging units and charging stations in at least five different districts within six months from the effective date of its license. At least five percent of the charging units in the charging network and at least fifty percent of the charging units located on highways and state roads under the responsibility of the General Directorate of Highways must be DC 50 kW and above charging units.
At each charging station connected to the charging network, at least one of the DC powered charging units, if available, must be equipped with a combined charging system (Combo-2) defined in the TS EN 62196-3 standard. In the absence of this, at least one of the AC power charging units must be equipped with a Type-2 charging socket defined in the TS EN 62196-2 standard.
It is obligatory for the license holders who do not establish the charging network within the specified period or cannot protect it after creating it, must meet the necessary conditions within thirty days without the need for notification and notify the Authority that these conditions are met.
Charging network operator license, to the licensee:
- Providing nationwide charging service,
- Establishing and operating a charging station,
- Establishing and operating a charging station within the scope of the certificates it has issued,
- Making loyalty agreements with users,
- It gives the right to demand the supply of real estate for charging stations.
The rights of the licensee within the scope of the license cannot be transferred, assigned or pledged to third parties without the permission of the Authority.
Changes in Direct Shares, Chairman and Members of the Board of Directors, and Persons Authorized to Represent in the Partnership Structure of the Licensee Legal Entity
In case of a change in the shareholding structure of the licensee legal entity, the chairman and members of the board of directors and the persons authorized to represent, the licensee shall state this situation within six months at the latest, following the publication of the change in the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette:
- Except for the changes in the publicly held shares of joint stock companies, in case of a direct share change in the shareholding structure of the licensed legal entity, a notarized copy of the agreement regarding the transfer of shares or the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette regarding the change,
- In case of a change in the chairman and members of the board of directors of the licensed legal entity, a notarized copy of the decision regarding the change or the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette in which the decision is published,
- In case of a change in the person or persons authorized to represent the legal entity, the license holder notifies the Authority with the authorization document containing the identity information of the new authorized person or authorities and the limits of the authorization.
Information security
The charging network operator is responsible for the confidentiality, integrity, accessibility, accuracy and security of all information submitted to and submitted to the Authority. The charging network operator preserves the data obtained through the works and transactions carried out within the scope of its license in accordance with the current legislation and takes and implements security measures to prevent unauthorized persons from accessing this data and charging network operating system, except for the Authority and other relevant public institutions and organizations authorized by the Authority. The data collected within the scope of the charging service must be securely stored by the charging network operator for at least five years from the date of service. The Authority has the right to use, report, publish and make available to the public the data it collects from charging network operators.
Certificated
The charging network operator issues a certificate for the establishment and operation of the charging station by third parties and the operation of the charging station in connection with its own charging network. The certificate issued by the charging network operator defines the rights and obligations of the parties regarding the provision of charging service between the charging network operator and the charging station operator to which it has issued the certificate.
Only one licensee can issue a certificate for each charging station. The duration of the issued certificate cannot exceed the validity period of the relevant charging network operator license. The charging station operator can provide charging services at more than one charging station with a certificate obtained from the charging network operator. The primary responsibility for providing the charging service rests with the charging network operator.
Providing the charging service at a charging station within the scope of the certificate does not remove the obligations and responsibilities of the charging network operator arising from the relevant legislation and other legislation. The charging station operator carries out charging service activities under the supervision and control of the charging network operator issuing the certificate.
If the charging station operator’s certificate expires, its activities are also terminated. In this case, the charging station operator may apply for a certificate by applying to another charging network operator and operate by connecting to the charging network of the license holder, for which it has obtained the certificate.
Charging station
The charging station is designed, installed, commissioned, operated, decommissioned and inspected in accordance with current legislation and standards. No natural or legal person may provide electrical energy for charging the electric vehicle or allow the use of charging equipment at the charging station, contrary to the applicable legislation or standards.
The charging station may consist of one or more charging units. At the charging station, charging is only possible when connected to a charging network. The meters to be used for measuring the electricity consumption of charging stations with a separate electricity subscription and at least one DC 50 kW and above charging unit must be compatible with the automatic meter reading system to be installed in accordance with the relevant legislation.
It is obligatory to have at least one payment system that will enable all users to purchase charging services at public charging stations where charging service is provided. Information on how to use this payment method is given at the charging station and digital channels of charging network operators.
Operation of the Charging Station
In order for a charging station to start offering charging service, it must have a business and working license in accordance with the provisions of the Regulation on Opening a Business and Working Licenses. If it is understood that the license to open a business and work has expired, the activities related to the charging service at the charging station are terminated. It is obligatory to provide continuous and uninterrupted charging service at public charging stations, except for justifiable reasons and force majeure not caused by the license holder. The charging stations, which are open to use in the parking lots of workplaces such as hotels, restaurants, shopping centers, may offer charging services limited to the working hours of the workplace they are connected to. Any charging station found to be dangerous to use will be taken out of service immediately.
User Complaints
charging network operator; It is obliged to establish communication channels where user complaints are forwarded, recorded and users can be followed, and to inform the user by finalizing the requests sent to him within fifteen business days. The provisions of the Law on the Protection of Consumers shall apply to the compensation of the rights and damages of the users receiving charging service. Records created in this context are kept for two years by taking information security measures.
Free Access Platform
A free access platform is established and operated by the Authority.
Charging network operator:
- Geographical location of the charging station for each charging station in its own charging network,
- Number of charging units,
- Type of charging unit,
- Charge unit power,
- The number of sockets and their types,
- Charging station number and name,
- Payment method and working hours to be used for charging service at each charging station,
- Charging service prices to be applied on the basis of charging unit and socket for each charging station,
- The start and end or possible end dates and times of the planned maintenance and malfunctions of the charging station,
- Compliance status of charging units and sockets at charging stations,
- Other information deemed necessary by the Institution,
It is obliged to submit it to the Authority for publication on the free access platform in accordance with the periods and format to be determined by the Authority.
You can find the full text of the regulation here.
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Seray ÇİNAR (Apprentice Attorney)
Uçar Law & Consultancy Office
