Why does the energy consumption shown in the Load & Energy Statistics differ from the values in the Charging Events, and how does ChargePilot calculate these figures?

The discrepancy comes from the different data sources and calculation methods ChargePilot uses for each section:

Charging Events reflect the actual energy delivered to the vehicle during a charging session. ChargePilot uses the raw meter values reported directly by the charging station — specifically the meter_start and meter_stop readings. These values are taken directly from the hardware and represent the most accurate measurement of delivered energy, without any additional processing.

Load & Energy Statistics, in contrast, are calculated by ChargePilot entirely in AC (alternating current). This is because the electrical infrastructure, including the grid, the circuits behind the fuse, and ChargePilot’s own energy optimizer, operates in AC. Even DC chargers have an AC connection on the grid-facing side; only the output to the vehicle is DC. To accurately represent the total energy load on the site and the optimizer’s logic, ChargePilot converts the reported DC output from charging stations into the corresponding AC input that would have been required to supply it.

During this conversion, ChargePilot applies an assumed efficiency factor of 96%, accounting for typical energy losses that occur during AC-to-DC conversion inside the charger. This means that to deliver 50 kW of DC power to a vehicle, the charger would have drawn more energy from the AC grid.

Example:

If a DC charger reports a charging power of 50 kW (DC output), ChargePilot calculates the AC equivalent as:

AC Power = 50 kW (DC) / 0.96 ≈ 52.08 kW (AC)

This ensures that the Load & Energy Statistics reflect the real AC load on the site, aligning with how the grid and ChargePilot’s optimizer operate.