Charge, the off-grid electric vehicle (EV) charging specialist formerly known as Zero Carbon Charge, is set to launch its first commercial stations on the N3 highway in mid-May. The two sites, Charge N3 Tugela in KwaZulu-Natal and Charge N3 Roadside in the Free State, mark the start of an ambitious national network that aims to reach 120 locations across South Africa.
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According to co-founder and director Joubert Roux, the N3 stations are already financially viable before their official opening. The company has secured a three-year agreement with electric-fleet logistics aggregator Zimi, which has reserved 50% of the energy production for its fleet.
Civil works at both sites are nearly finished, and battery systems are arriving this week. This commercial rollout follows a successful 15-month proof-of-concept at Wolmaransstad, which maintained a 99.6% uptime since late 2024. The Wolmaransstad site validated the company’s unique modular design, which allows solar, battery storage, and charging capacity to scale independently as demand grows.
Charge argues that off-grid charging is essential for South African EV adoption. Roux points out that rural distribution grids were never designed to handle the massive, sudden loads required to charge hundreds of cars and trucks at highway interchanges. By bypassing the national grid, Charge provides a reliable solution that doesn’t strain local municipal infrastructure.
The stations are designed for high efficiency, breaking even at just three vehicles per day (averaging 55kWh per charge) and reaching operational profitability at nine. Roux predicts the entire national network will be profitable once the local EV count reaches 60,000, a tipping point he believes is imminent as sales from manufacturers like BYD continue to surge.
Following the N3 launch, Charge plans to build out the N1 corridor from Cape Town to Musina, followed by the N6. The initial phase involves 60 stations at 300km intervals, eventually doubling to 120 stations at 150km intervals.
The project is backed by a R100-million investment from the Development Bank of Southern Africa, with a matching private round being finalized via African Merchant Capital and the tokenization platform Mesh. Roux also confirmed plans for a public offering later this year, though it will bypass the JSE in favour of platforms better suited for early-stage development capital.
