In Latvia, the most financially unsuccessful fuel station owner – Viada joint stock company – has been given an opportunity for a boost by Latvenergo. The companies have agreed that by 2030, 134 Elektrum Drive charging points for electric vehicles will be installed at 55 of Viada’s 101 fuel stations.
The company representatives announced this when opening the first electric charging station in Jēkabpils, at 6 Varoņu Street. Four charging points with a maximum available capacity of up to 150 kW are already available there.
Latvenergo points out that cooperation with Viada allows Elektrum Drive not only to expand the charging network at the regional level, but also to work with a partner whose fuel station locations and infrastructure are already optimally suited for electric vehicle charging. This partnership is part of a coordinated Baltics-wide development model that already includes cooperation with Viada in Lithuania, strengthening a unified approach to sustainable mobility.
In Latvia, this cooperation could open up additional revenue opportunities for Viada, because although it does indeed have the largest number of fuel stations, its financial indicators significantly lag behind those of its competitors. Specifically, the company ended 2024 with a turnover of 291.224 million euros and a profit of 160.27 thousand euros. Meanwhile, Virši A, the owner of 82 fuel stations, finished last year with a turnover of 353.479 million euros and a profit of 6.12 million euros. It is true that Virši also sells electricity, but last year the company also made substantial investments – 23.3 million euros. Neste (76 stations) and Circle K (85 stations) also have significantly higher turnover and profit figures.
With the rapid increase in the number of electric vehicles, Viada could attract more customers who will not only charge their electric vehicles, but also buy a snack in the station shop. Publicly available data (as of 01.07.25.) show that in the first six months of this year the number of electric vehicles in Latvia has increased by 19%, or 1,400 vehicles, reaching 7,798 in total.
In cooperation with Viada, charging points with various capacities are being developed – from 100 kW to 300 kW. At 11 Viada fuel stations, the capacity will be 600 kW. Cooperation with Viada will provide new charging opportunities throughout the territory of Latvia. New stations will be built in Riga, Liepāja, Daugavpils, Jūrmala, Jelgava, Valmiera, Aizkraukle, Jēkabpils, Ludza and many other Latvian cities; in total, 134 charging points will be built at 55 addresses.
“Our charging philosophy is to respect the customer’s time – that is why we are building new stations, offering the fastest charging, providing the convenience of modern apps and, most importantly, we stand for changing habits,” comments Ansis Valdovskis, Director of Electric Transport Charging for the Baltics at AS Latvenergo, on Elektrum Drive’s expansion.
He also explains how partners are chosen for cooperation projects: “Elektrum Drive offers and evaluates cooperation opportunities with various partners, but overall the main general criteria are the location and its potential (for example, coverage of large cities and populated areas), the partner’s profile – they can be diverse, from fuel station networks, supermarkets, office centers to municipal properties, assessing practical technical possibilities (for example, suitable electricity infrastructure, availability of parking spaces, high-power charging capabilities) and long-term cooperation and conditions, as well as growth opportunities on a Baltics scale, since the Elektrum Drive network also has substantial coverage beyond the borders of Latvia.
Thus, in the fuel station segment we also have several partners with whom we cooperate, and one of them is the Viada fuel station network, for which locations, their potential and cooperation conditions have been evaluated in exactly the same way. Overall, the Elektrum Drive partner base in the fuel station segment is quite broad – we cooperate with several market participants, including our charging services being available at Circle K, Neste, Olerex and Kool, with different cooperation models. It is similar in the retail segment, where we also cooperate with several partners – the Rimi and Elvi chains, shopping centers (Spice, SKY, etc.).”
“Viada Baltija has always been focused on ensuring customer convenience and modern solutions. Cooperation with Latvenergo and Elektrum Drive enables us to offer our customers even broader mobility options – alongside traditional refueling we now also provide fast and reliable electric vehicle charging. Our fuel stations are located in strategically convenient places throughout Latvia, so this step is an important investment in the development of sustainable mobility and in shaping new habits in society,” says VIADA Baltija Commercial Director Mindaugs Daknis (Mindaugas Daknys) about the cooperation.
In half a year, Elektrum Drive has expanded its network with more than 100 new charging points not only in Latvia, but throughout the Baltics. As a result, more than 1,000 charging points are currently available in the network, bringing the company significantly closer to its goal of expanding the charging network to more than 1,200 charging points this year.
Originally published at https://inc-baltics.com/viada-klus-pievilcigaka-autobraucejiem-vares-uzladet-ari-elektroauto/
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