LEAP24, a Dutch provider of fast-charging stations, is causing a stir in the Netherlands by announcing weekend fast charging at just €0.24 per kWh, essentially the price of home charging. To compare, data shows that DC chargers over 50 kW average around €0.79 per kWh, with a typical range of €0.67 to €0.86 in 2025.
For Dutch drivers, this seems like a genuine price breakthrough. But the obvious question is how much of this promise reaches Belgium, where the charging landscape is fragmented, prices vary widely, and EV users increasingly demand transparency. Currently, Belgians can only apply for a Leap24 card if they also have a legal address in the Netherlands.
In Belgium, operators are legally required to display the full charging price clearly at the charger before a session begins, a rule strengthened by the EU’s AFIR regulation. But despite this transparency obligation, there is still no cap on how high those prices may be.
Shift to lower grid pressure
The Dutch company, which now operates around forty fast-charging sites in the Netherlands, positions the low weekend tariff as a way to shift charging to moments of lower grid pressure. The subscription costs €4.99 per month and also provides access to hundreds of thousands of public charging points across Europe via roaming.
Once you cross the border into Belgium, however, the picture becomes significantly less apparent. LEAP24 is available on the Belgian charging card comparison platforms. It markets its PartnerPas for both Dutch and Belgian customers, yet it does not publish a Belgian station list, and the €0.24 weekend deal applies only to the Netherlands.
In Belgium, the challenge is even greater because prices vary not only between operators but also between regions. Home charging remains the most predictable option: in Flanders, the average household tariff sits around €0.32 per kWh, rising to roughly €0.36 in Brussels and Wallonia.
Some energy suppliers report even lower averages, closer to €0.28. Against that backdrop, LEAP24’s estimated €0.45 DC tariff in Belgium is competitive compared to the country’s fast-charging networks, many of which charge well above €0.50 per kWh.
A separate question is how widely the LEAP24 card can be used. According to roaming platforms, the PartnerPas works at major networks such as Fastned, Allego, TotalEnergies, Shell Recharge, Ecotap, and Ionity.
This does not mean that LEAP24’s low Dutch promotional prices apply at these stations in the Netherlands, too. In Belgium, the operator sets the tariff, and the charging card passes that price onto the user. That means a session on Ionity—with prices often approaching or exceeding €0.70 per kWh—will not magically drop to LEAP24 levels.
The value of the card for Belgian drivers, therefore, depends mainly on the presence of actual LEAP24-branded stations close to the border, and here the information becomes murky. LEAP24 publicly highlights its Dutch network and its ambitions in Germany, but does not mention Belgian locations.
Appealing in urban settings
For EV drivers in Belgium, the takeaway is mixed. LEAP24’s weekend rate of €0.24 per kWh is genuinely disruptive—but currently appears limited to Dutch soil. The company’s regular rates, around €0.44 to €0.45 per kWh for DC if the comparison data is accurate, remain attractive compared with many Belgian fast-charging alternatives. But it might spark an idea with other providers, who are active in Belgium too.
LEAP24’s ambitions are clearly international, and the company states that PartnerPass holders can charge at over 500,000 public charging points across Europe. For drivers who frequently cross borders, the card is a valuable addition.
Needing clarity
In Belgium, LEAP24’s low Dutch tariffs inevitably revive the debate over whether public EV charging should be regulated in the same way as petrol and diesel, which have long been subject to federal maximum prices.
Yet despite this tradition of fuel price control, neither Belgium nor the EU is moving toward capping EV charging tariffs. Under the EU’s AFIR regulation, which Belgium must apply, operators are required to display clear per-kWh prices and accept card payments, but they remain free to set their own tariffs.
As a result, Belgian EV drivers continue to face a highly variable pricing landscape, with fast-charging rates ranging from €0.45 to well above €0.60 per kWh, depending on operator and location.
Consumer organisations argue that a Belgian price ceiling could protect drivers who rely on public charging, especially city residents without home chargers, who often pay significantly more than homeowners charging at domestic rates of around €0.32 to €0.36 per kWh.
However, policymakers warn that fixed price caps could undermine investment in new high-power charging infrastructure, which is still expanding and requires heavy upfront costs, particularly in regions with expensive grid upgrades. For now, Belgium prioritises transparency and market competition over regulation, leaving EV drivers with clearer information—but not necessarily lower prices.
