The US company WattEV develops solar-powered fast charging stations for electric trucks. In the near future, the 40-tonner should have an additional 500 kilometers range within half an hour.
The American company WattEV has received a grant from the California Energy Commission for the development of solar-powered megawatt charging stations. According to the industry magazine pv-magazine, the additional funds amount to five million US dollars. The funding is intended to advance the construction of the first fast charging station in Bakersfield, California.
Second-life energy storage from old batteries
The electricity for the charging station is drawn from a 110 hectare photovoltaic system and is designed for a charging capacity of 25 megawatts. A second-life energy store made from recycled electric car batteries also supports the system. The support even enables charging capacities of 40 megawatts to be achieved. In total, the charging station in Bakersfield is to supply up to twelve electric trucks with environmentally friendly energy at the same time. The first groundbreaking should take place in October of this year.
The site will have three different chargers with different capacities. Both a 250kW, a 350kW and a 1MW powerful charger are available for this. The aim is to equip a 40-tonne electric truck with 500 kilometers more range in half an hour using the largest chargers.
Further fast charging stations planned in the USA
In addition to the Bakersfield facility, similar projects are being planned in San Bernardino and Gardena. This is intended to supply the freight traffic in the southern California port cities of Los Angeles and Long Beach with sufficient electricity. WattEV is planning a total of 40 additional charging stations across the country. According to the company, this will supply 12,000 trucks with one gigawatt of electricity over the next ten years. This will cost more than $ 30 million.
A long way to go, but the first progress can already be seen today: WattEV has already reserved six VNR Electric Class 8 trucks of the Volvo brand for the transport of goods in the past. In addition, the company is said to have secured 50 models of the Tesla Semis. The Elon Musk company’s electric tractor units will go into series production next year.
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