Electric mobility and charging HUB.

Electric mobility and charging HUB.

In Europe, electric mobility is growing rapidly, registrations of electric cars (BEV – Battery Electric Vehicle and PHEV – Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle), in Italy recorded a growth of over 150% in 2020, with almost 30 thousand electric cars registered.

Among the main factors that have determined the strong growth of the electric car market in the national territory, we mention first of all the strengthening of the incentives for the purchase of these vehicles (so-called “Ecobonus“), but also the increase in the electrified models offered by the houses. cars, we have 88 new models (both BEV and PHEV), an increase of 26 units compared to 2019. Ultimately, the further growth of the charging infrastructure of public access electric vehicles, known as charging HUBs, should not be underestimated .

Compared to the long term, however, the Integrated National Plan for Energy and Climate (PNIEC) sets the goal of a fleet of electric vehicles equal to 6 million units for 2030, an evidently ambitious target if compared to the current size of the fleet of electric cars in circulation to date (70,000 units), but not too much if we follow the growth trend of the last 12 months and the forecasts of the automotive sector experts.

THE ROLE OF CHARGING HUBS

In this in-depth analysis we classify the charging HUBs into two categories: urban HUB and extra-urban HUB.

An urban charging hub is essentially the new gas station of the future. Today many experts are convinced that service stations and distributors in general will convert fuel pumps with new electric charging points. This will strictly depend on the development of technology and on the single charging speed of the specific charging point (column), as on average today a BEV car is recharged with a timing exceeding 4 hours in AC mode – alternating current and in one hour and half in DC mode – direct current.

Surely the service stations present in the metropolitan inhabited centers will become one, but the old service stations located along the provincial roads will have a lot of problems, if not surrounded by neighboring commercial attractions such as: bars, restaurants and shops in general.

It must certainly be said, however, that the recharge chain shows a strong dynamism. The most active players today not only confirm but strengthen their commitment to the development of infrastructures and the supply of recharging services, ensuring that the public availability of columns in Italy amounts to 16,000 units at the end of 2020, + 20% compared to the end 2019, with a doubling forecast by 2022. Alongside this, the attention to market development of new strategic and significant players, such as the “big” players in the Oil & Gas sector, can give further impetus to the entire sector .

 

 

A suburban charging hub is basically a large service area. Take for example all the service areas along the motorways and / or the islands located on the large parking lots of the outlets and shopping centers. This second category plays a fundamental role in the overall development of the entire electric mobility system because, if it is true that today on average an electric car consumes its battery in a range of 250/300 km, the more these charging stations will be widespread in the suburban area, long-distance journeys within the national territory will be more guaranteed. Logically, an extra-urban HUB will have to equip itself with charging points in DC mode, guaranteeing the user ultra-fast charging.

 

CHARGING HUB: WHAT THE REGULATION PROVIDES

The development of public recharging points is facilitated by the fact that there is already a very precise, simple and well-defined Community legislation. The main regulatory references are:

• Directive 2014/94 / EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on the construction of an infrastructure for alternative fuels (better known as the AFID Directive – Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive), which contains the requirements that must be complied with for the development of the infrastructure serving alternative fuels.
• Law n. 134 of 7 August 2012, Art. 17 septies, paragraph 1 (better known as PNIRE – National Infrastructure Plan for the recharging of vehicles powered by electricity) which is a set of guidelines promoted by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport aimed at guiding the development of electric mobility in Italy.

On the basis of the aforementioned regulations, the public recharging points are in turn classified according to two macro categories:

• Standard power in alternating current AC; That is a recharging point that allows the transfer of electricity to an electric vehicle with a power equal to or less than 22 kW; a) slow = equal to or less than 7.4 kW, b) accelerated = greater than 7.4 kW and equal to or less than 22 kW. The legislation also prescribes that these charging points must comply with Mode 3 of IEC 61851 and must be equipped with a Type 2 charging socket according to EN 62196.
• High power in direct current DC; That is a recharging point that allows the transfer of electricity to an electric vehicle with a power greater than 22 kW; a) fast: greater than 22 kW and less than or equal to 50 kW, b) ultra-fast: greater than 50 kW; The legislation also prescribes that these charging points must be equipped with the CCS Combo2 Standard, according to the EN 62196-3 standard.

Source: MIT (Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport)

 

 

The PNIRE describes very well how the charging service is to be managed. In line with the text of DIRECTIVE 2014/94 / EU, the recharging activity of electric vehicles must be developed as a competitive activity open to all those interested in developing or managing a recharging infrastructure. The public recharging of electric vehicles is an activity to be carried out in competition. Consequently, every industrial entity involved in the production of recharging systems must move towards the manufacture of open and interoperable systems in order to guarantee territorial continuity of recharging both at local, regional, extra-regional and community level.

The systems developed must also be characterized by an adequate management system of the charging infrastructures that is able to return a series of basic information and functionalities.
All recharging points accessible to the public must also include contract-free charging methods for users of electric vehicles, thus without the need to conclude contracts exclusively with the electricity suppliers or operators (infrastructure managers) concerned.

Finally, the PNIRE reiterates that there is a substantial difference between “energy sale” and “recharge service”:

It is necessary to favor open solutions which, in particular, allow recharging to be effectively considered not only as a sale of energy but as part of the provision of a service. In this context, even in the wake of almost all of the ongoing European experiences, the sale of kWh is not the only component of the entire billed service. This scenario therefore supports the opportunity that many industrial operators can provide a mobility service, based on strategic business choices and not on regulatory artifices aimed at circumventing EU regulations.

 

THE INVECO GROUP’S COMMITMENT TO ELECTRIC MOBILITY

Thanks to an important industrial real estate assets, INVECO’s commitment will be to develop feasibility studies aimed at integrating photovoltaic systems and installing new recharging points with direct management.

 

 

Following the forecast graph of e-mobility for 2030, INVECO will certainly seize the opportunity in recent years to integrate the best technologies in terms of quality and efficiency into the car parks of its industrial plants, giving a double service to its tenants: direct accessibility for employees and green sustainability.