Bring Your Own Tariff: negotiate your own EV charging rates, keep one fleet charging card

Why should businesses have to choose between negotiating better EV charging prices and keeping their charging simple?

Paua's Bring Your Own Tariff (BYOT) model allows businesses to negotiate charging rates directly with participating charge point operators, while Paua manages the payments, transactions and consolidated billing.

Fleet managers get the benefit of their own commercial agreements without introducing additional charging cards, driver apps or invoices.

It's a simple idea: you negotiate the charging price, Paua takes care of everything else.

Why fleets are starting to negotiate their own charging rates

Most public EV charging networks publish a standard price per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Drivers arrive, charge and pay the advertised tariff.

But commercial fleets are different.

A logistics company operating electric trucks might regularly use the same high-power charging hub. A delivery business might have dozens of vans charging across a particular region.

These fleets bring predictable electricity demand to charging networks. That creates opportunities for businesses and charge point operators to agree commercial terms based on charging volumes, locations or longer-term commitments.

We are already seeing this approach develop across the industry.

Fleete, for example, offers commercial charging arrangements where fleets can secure lower per-kWh prices by committing to higher charging volumes.

Aegis Energy has outlined an Energy-as-a-Service proposition offering contracted access and fixed energy pricing at its developing charging hubs.

And Openreach has described how it uses incentives with selected public charging operators, including night-time discounts and access arrangements.

These models differ, but they share an important principle: fleet charging prices can reflect a business's particular requirements and purchasing power.

The problem with negotiating directly

Traditionally, securing preferential charging rates can create another problem.

The charging operator may require the business to use its own payment app, charging card and billing arrangements.

For a fleet using multiple networks, the administrative complexity can quickly grow.

Drivers end up carrying multiple cards or installing more apps. Finance teams receive invoices from several suppliers. Fleet managers lose the simplicity of having all their charging transactions in one place.

The business might secure a cheaper charging rate but make life considerably more complicated.

Paua believes fleets should be able to negotiate their own rates without sacrificing the benefits of a single charging platform.

How Bring Your Own Tariff works with Paua

Bring Your Own Tariff separates the commercial negotiation from the everyday charging experience.

The fleet negotiates its tariff. The business agrees a rate directly with a participating charge point operator. This might reflect expected charging volumes, regular use of particular locations or another commercial arrangement.

Paua applies the agreed rate. Once the charging operator confirms the agreement and agrees to support it through Paua, we configure the fleet-specific tariff within our platform.

Drivers continue charging as normal. Employees use their existing Paua charge card or app. The agreed charging rate appears in the Paua app and is reflected in their transaction receipts.

Paua manages the administration. We process the charging transactions, reconcile the agreed commercial adjustments with the charging operator and include the charging costs in the fleet's consolidated billing.

The fleet manager continues to see charging activity in the Paua dashboard, alongside transactions from other charging networks.

There is no need to introduce another payment system just to benefit from a negotiated rate.

Who benefits from Bring Your Own Tariff?

BYOT is particularly relevant to fleets that use public charging frequently enough to negotiate favourable commercial terms.

That might include delivery businesses with predictable routes, electric truck operators using high-power charging hubs, or larger fleets directing drivers towards preferred charging networks.

Charging operators also benefit. They can negotiate directly with customers, encourage regular usage and build commercial relationships without having to provide every element of the fleet's payment and administration service.

Paua provides the link between those commercial agreements and the day-to-day charging experience.

Frequently asked questions

Can any business negotiate its own EV charging tariff?

Businesses can discuss commercial tariffs directly with charge point operators. Whether a preferential rate is available depends on the operator, expected usage and the proposed agreement. Paua can then assess whether that rate can be supported through its platform.

Can I use my negotiated charging tariff with my Paua card?

Yes, where the charge point operator agrees to make the tariff available through Paua. We confirm the commercial arrangement before applying the fleet-specific rate to your account.

Does Bring Your Own Tariff work across every charging network?

Not automatically. BYOT depends on agreement with the relevant charging operator. Paua currently supports manually configured, fleet-specific charging tariffs, which can be updated when the agreed commercial terms change.

Can my drivers still charge on other networks?

Yes. Drivers retain access to the wider Paua charging network. Their agreed tariff applies to the relevant participating operator, while other charging sessions follow the applicable Paua network pricing.

Your charging tariff. One Paua platform.

As electric fleets grow, businesses will increasingly want greater control over where they charge and what they pay.

Paua's Bring Your Own Tariff approach gives fleet managers the opportunity to combine direct commercial negotiations with the simplicity of one charging card, one app and one consolidated invoice.

Already negotiated an EV charging rate, or thinking about approaching a charging network?

Talk to the Paua team about bringing your own charging tariff to the Paua platform.

‍