EV Charging Gas Station Forecourt: The Ultimate Controller Guide

The U.S. now has more than 80,000 EV charging stations and nearly 249,000 ports, while charging demand is growing 55% annually. EV charging gas station forecourt planning still leaves one question unanswered: what happens to the controller?

Operators can find plenty of network marketing and charger vendor material. What’s missing is the forecourt controller view, the part that already manages dispensers, card readers, tank gauges, car wash controllers, price signs, and credit card networks.

This guide covers the current parallel-system reality, the standards that are starting to move, and the controller features worth demanding before a mixed fuel and EV site commits to new infrastructure.

How Does EV Charging Work at a Traditional Fuel Site?

EV chargers at fuel sites operate as independent systems, separate from the forecourt controller that manages the fueling side.

DC fast chargers usually run at 150 to 400 kW, while Level 2 hardware typically runs at 7 to 19 kW. Those chargers connect to networks such as ChargePoint, EVgo, Tesla Supercharger, or open NACS-standard systems. The network handles payment, session management, and back-end reporting. The forecourt controller stays on the fuel side.

That matters because the controller already has a broad job. It manages dispensers, card readers, tank gauges, car wash controllers, price signs, and credit card networks. At a travel plaza or c-store, the controller is the operational spine for the petroleum side. EV charging does not naturally plug into that stack today.

The cleanest way to think about it is simple: EV chargers and forecourt controllers are parallel systems. They both serve the same site, but they handle their own transactions independently.

What Challenges Does a Mixed Fuel and EV Site Create?

Running fuel dispensers and EV chargers creates two separate technology stacks with duplicate transaction records, separate payment processing, and disconnected reporting.

A site with 16 fuel dispensers and 4 EV chargers now has two operating systems in practice. The forecourt controller manages petroleum. The charging network manages EV sessions. Neither one talks to the other by default, which means site teams often end up checking multiple dashboards just to understand what happened in a single day.

The back-office split is where the strain shows up fastest. Fuel sales flow through the forecourt controller and POS. EV sessions flow through the charging network back end. Payment is split as well. The dispenser card reader follows the forecourt controller’s EMV, P2PE, and POS path, while the EV charger uses its own terminal or app-based payment flow.

Loyalty is another friction point. Fuel loyalty programs rarely span EV charging without extra integration work. And there is an electrical side too. A DC fast charger can draw 150 to 400 kW on its own, so sites have to think about capacity across chargers, fuel island lighting, store HVAC, and existing equipment.

The result is a site that looks unified to the customer but remains split behind the scenes. That split is normal right now. It’s also the main reason operators need a clearer integration plan before they add chargers.

How Are Forecourt Standards Evolving to Include EV Charging?

The forecourt standards path exists, and it points toward EV charger integration rather than one-off custom work.

The Conexxus Forecourt Device Controller specification defines how forecourt controllers communicate with POS systems and forecourt devices. The current version is FDC V2.1.2 in XML, with FDC API V1.0 also available. The spec currently covers dispensers, tank gauges, car wash controllers, and price signs. Car wash support was formalized in 2021, which shows the standard does move as the site evolves.

That same standards body has already published work on ultra-fast EV charging opportunities and barriers on forecourts. The signal is hard to miss. EV chargers are moving from an edge case to a likely future device type in the controller conversation. The current FDC spec can be found at the Conexxus FDC Specification, and the related forecourt EV discussion appears in Conexxus Ultra-Fast EV Charging.

Future FDC versions may define standard messaging for EV charger control, status, and session data. That would mirror how fuel dispensers are handled today, which is why open integration matters. Proprietary lock-in can slow down adoption when the standards finally settle.

For operators, the practical takeaway is direct. Choose a forecourt controller vendor that can adapt when the standard expands, not one that only works inside a fixed vendor stack. Allied’s POS integration partners page reflects that open-spec approach, but it’s only one example in a broader market.

What Does the NEVI Program Mean for Fuel Site Operators?

NEVI gives fuel site operators a funding path for charger hardware, but it does not cover every part of a mixed fuel and EV site.

The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program provides $5 billion in total funding for FY2022 through FY2026, with $885 million allocated for FY2026. Federal guidance also now gives states more flexibility, including support for medium- and heavy-duty charging and upgrades to existing stations.

The core station requirements are straightforward:

• 4 minimum DC fast charging ports per station
• 150 kW minimum per port
• 24/7 public access
• 97% average annual uptime
• NACS and CCS1 connector support

Those requirements make travel plazas and truck stops along designated highway corridors the clearest candidates. The Federal Highway Administration guidance is available here: NEVI program guidance. AFDC’s charging infrastructure trend data is also a useful baseline for the broader market: AFDC EV Charging Infrastructure Trends.

NEVI funds the EV charging hardware and installation. It does not fund forecourt controller upgrades. That leaves the operator responsible for the technology foundation that has to run fuel and EV side by side.

Why Your Forecourt Controller Vendor Matters for the EV Transition

The forecourt controller stays on the site for decades, so the vendor choice affects more than one project.

Petroleum dispensers are not disappearing just because EV chargers are showing up. The site will run both systems for a long time. That makes this a controller selection problem as much as a charger selection problem. A good starting point is How to choose a forecourt controller, especially for operators planning travel plaza changes alongside fuel operations. Context from Travel plaza fuel management helps too.

Key selection criteria for this transition era:

1. Open integration specifications, so future EV standards can be adopted without proprietary lock-in.
2. Hardware that can host additional applications, including EV management and energy management software.
3. Long support lifecycles that outlast the technology transition.
4. A track record of adapting to previous industry shifts, such as self-serve pumps, electronic card readers, EMV certification, and PCI-validated P2PE.

Allied Electronics has been through those shifts since 1978, and its forecourt products reflect that history. NeXGen PRIME remains the fuel-side workhorse for sites that want continuity during change. AEGIS forecourt controller adds a Windows environment that can host third-party or customer-generated applications locally, which can reduce the need for extra site hardware. The POS integration partners page also signals an open-spec mindset.

That doesn’t make Allied the only viable path. It does make a useful benchmark. Operators should compare any vendor against the same requirements: open architecture, application hosting, and support for a long transition window.

EV Charging Gas Station Forecourt: Frequently Asked Questions

Petroleum operators evaluating EV charging infrastructure have specific questions about how it affects existing forecourt technology. Here are the most common ones and direct answers.

Conclusion

The transition is real, but it isn’t a sudden swap. EV chargers now run beside fuel systems, not inside them. Standards groups are moving toward a shared future. NEVI is funding charger deployment. The controller decision still sits at the center of the site.

Key takeaways:

• EV chargers operate as parallel systems today, not integrated forecourt devices.
• Conexxus FDC is the clearest standards path toward future integration.
• NEVI supports EV hardware and installation, but not controller upgrades.
• Vendor selection now affects flexibility for the next 20-plus years.

Planning starts with the current stack. Operators should evaluate integration openness and application-hosting capability before the next EV charging decision, then compare vendors against the same criteria.