Electric vehicles are trendy, but the charging infrastructure has been lacking for years. The first course is now to be set for the “Germany Network”.
The next fast charging station for electric cars should be reachable in ten minutes: That is the goal of the so-called Germany network. The Federal Ministry of Transport started the tender on Friday.
Companies and corporate consortia could now compete for the contract to set up and operate around 900 fast-charging locations throughout Germany, as the ministry announced in Berlin.
The Germany network should ensure the basic supply with fast charging infrastructure in medium and long-haul traffic with around 8,000 additional fast charging points.
Although there are already thousands of charging stations in Germany, so far there have been comparatively few fast charging stations. The ministry’s goal is a nationwide fast charging infrastructure.
“Charging anytime and anywhere, that is our goal,” said Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) according to the announcement. Fast charging points would have to be accessible nationwide within ten minutes and the payment methods would have to be simple and standardized.
According to the ministry, the construction and operation of the Germany network will be awarded in two separate tenders. The focus of the first tender, which has now been launched, would be 900 so-called search rooms for fast charging locations in 23 regional lots, which cover all of Germany. The final awards for the individual bids are expected in the third quarter of 2022.
In a second invitation to tender, the construction and operation of around 200 fast charging locations at unmanaged rest areas on the federal motorways were to be put out to tender. The federal Autobahn GmbH will tender the nationwide motorway lots in autumn.
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
