Driivz takes on Iberian charging network

Driivz has been selected to manage Iberdrola-bp pulse’s fast and ultra-fast charging network across Spain and Portugal, bringing around 2,500 chargers under a software platform designed for operational visibility and energy management.

The agreement gives Iberdrola-bp pulse real-time oversight of charger availability, uptime, hardware performance, and charging patterns across its Iberian network. The platform will also support dynamic load balancing and smart energy management as higher-power charging sites place larger and more variable demands on local electrical infrastructure.

Iberdrola-bp pulse is the joint venture between Iberdrola and bp pulse, combining utility-scale electricity expertise with public charging deployment and network operation. Its chargers are supplied with renewable electricity, linking the portfolio to generation sourcing, grid capacity, and the operational demands of public charging.

As charging networks expand, the software layer is moving from a back-office function into core infrastructure. A large public charging network is not simply a collection of installed units. It is a distributed electrical system spread across multiple locations, grid connections, hardware types, payment systems, user interfaces, and service agreements.

Operational performance has become central to the commercial model. Poor availability reduces utilisation, increases maintenance costs, and weakens confidence in electrified transport. High-power chargers add further complexity because each session can create a substantial short-duration load, particularly at motorway sites, urban charging hubs, retail destinations, and fleet corridors.

Driivz’s platform is designed to help operators manage that complexity by identifying faults, monitoring equipment status, shaping load, and coordinating charging behaviour. Those functions become more valuable as networks move towards ultra-fast charging, depot electrification, demand response, and the eventual use of vehicle batteries as flexible grid resources.

The Iberian market is also becoming more electrically interconnected and infrastructure-led. Spain and Portugal are expanding renewable generation while working through grid capacity, cross-border power flow, and transport electrification challenges. The reinforcement of the Spain–Portugal interconnector forms part of the same regional shift towards a more flexible, better-connected power system.

Distribution-level flexibility will be central to the next phase of charging deployment. Ultra-fast charging hubs can resemble commercial or industrial loads when several vehicles charge simultaneously. Without active energy management, each site can become a local reinforcement problem. With coordinated software, charging demand can be shaped around available capacity, tariff structures, and service priorities.

That does not remove the need for physical grid investment. Software can improve utilisation and reduce unnecessary peaks, but constrained sites still require adequate connections, transformer capacity, protection design, metering, and maintenance access. The strongest charging networks will combine robust electrical design with active operational control.

Charging deployment is therefore moving into a more mature phase. Network scale remains important, but installed hardware only delivers value when chargers are available, grid connections are well managed, and faults are resolved quickly. A charger count without operational resilience is a weak measure of infrastructure readiness.

The Driivz agreement places digital control closer to the centre of public charging. As high-power sites become more common, network operation will depend as much on visibility, load coordination, and asset performance data as on the chargers themselves.