CEO Alliance’s project for fostering a pan-European charging infrastructure network for heavy vehicles moves on to the next stage as Traton Group (which Scania is part of), Daimler Truck, and Volvo Group establish a Joint Venture for the development of public high-capacity charging infrastructure.
Scania, as part of Traton Group, led the project within the scope of CEO Alliance along with partners Enel, Iberdrola, E.ON, ABB, and SAP. The aim of the project was to create a roadmap for the build-out of an EU-wide charging infrastructure for heavy vehicles.
The project concluded that the build-out ought to be prioritized along 9 main highway corridor sections and 11 main logistical hubs, in total demanding some 28 000 chargers and an investment of EUR 9 billion.
The project’s conclusions have been instrumental for the understanding of the heavy duty transport sector’s needs for infrastructure, and infrastructure’s importance for the demand for battery-electric vehicles. This understanding has led to the establishment of the Joint Venture among the leading vehicle manufacturers, but also to political action nationally as well as on EU level. EU is now preparing the Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR), with the aim of accelerating a European build-out of charging infrastructure for electrified transports.
The Joint Venture will install and operate at least 1 700 high-performance green energy charge-points along major highways and logistical hubs across Europe – an investment of EUR 500 million, which is assumed to be by far the largest charging infrastructure investment in the European heavy-duty truck industry to date. This kick-start is a call to action to all other industry players, as well as governments and policymakers, to work together for a further rapid expansion of the necessary charging network as well as investing in renewable energy in order to reach Europe’s climate targets.
Electricity grid capacity and power supply remain key challenges going forward. That is why the CEO Alliance continues to focus on grid enhancement and build-out, in new projects led by the leading distribution systems operators Iberdrola, E.ON, and Enel.
Access to high-capacity public charging is fundamental for the electrification of heavy transports. This is the conclusion from our joint project with our CEO Alliance partners. The Joint Venture aiming at building at least 1 700 public charging points is the continuation of that work, and is our contribution to the shift to a sustainable transport system.
Read more:
Commercial Vehicle Charging Europe, power to go forward (cvchargingeurope.com)
