A Network-based Set Covering Model for Charging Station Location Problem: A Case Study in Norway

Due to the worldwide concern about excessive greenhouse emissions and global warming, vehicles with cleaner sources of energy, e.g., electricity, hydrogen, etc., have been increasingly introduced into the market. Apart from the regulations and government incentives, the distance convenience and accessibility to charging stations have become one of the most important success factors to promote the wide adoption of electric or hydrogen vehicles (EVs/HVs). Establishing a charging station network is a complex decision making problem that cannot be solved with traditional location optimization models. The tradeoff among demands, the density of facilities, and cost-effectiveness needs to be considered holistically. Therefore, we formulate a network-based set covering location problem (NSCLP) in this paper, which considers the coverage of both nodes and arcs in a network. The proposed model is validated with a real-world case study for optimizing the charging stations of electric trucks in the northern part of Norway. The computational results reveal that the location decisions of charging stations are sensitive to the required accessibility of the network.