Source: Energy & Management Powernews, 20 . October 2022
Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) wants to push the expansion of the charging network for electric vehicles. Supply and mobility gaps are to be avoided, he said on October 19.
For the already beginning ramp-up of e-mobility according to registration figures, there needs to be an advance construction of charging stations. "We have no time to lose," said Federal Minister of Transport Volker Wissing (FDP) at the presentation of a package of measures, which is to increase the current 70,000 charging points to 2030 about tenfold. E-mobility will only gain acceptance if charging is as easy as refueling, Wissing told journalists in Berlin. Charging should fit into everyday life and electromobility "should be experienced as an improvement, as progress."
On October 19, the cabinet approved a "Master Plan II" that is to roll out a comprehensive and user-friendly charging network. To this end, obstacles such as a lack of space and own-power regulations are to be dismantled. The federal government is investing around 6.3 billion euros by 2030, while industry as well as the states and municipalities are making additional contributions and are included in the plan. The most difficult task, according to Wissing, is integrating e-mobiles into the power grid. For example, he said, the electric cars already on the road today consume about 0.5% of Germany's electricity, but by 2030 it could be 8%.
Digital planning and networking
Johannes Pallasch, head of the National Charging Infrastructure Control Center, emphasized digitalization in the project, both for networking and information about the next free charging option and the cost to drivers. By 2025, an "initial network" would be rolled out, which would be densified later entirely according to demand, Pallasch said.
The study "Charging infrastructure after 2025/2030" from his control center puts the demand in 2030 at 440,000 to 843,000 charging points. The figure, he said, depends on how much private infrastructure is created and how busy the public infrastructure is then. The charging behavior of users also plays a role, whether they charge slowly at work or at home, or quickly at public points.
Charging network also for e-trucks
Federal government land is to be made available for charging points, especially along highways, and put out to tender. That would also concern a long-distance truck network, as it is European obligation. "It's not about just counting charging points, but also about performance and adapting to real demand, which will be achieved through digital planning for placement and quantity," Pallasch explained. The truck charging network "will be a thick one," he said, because truck stands are already more than full to capacity.
Stefan Gelbhaar, spokesman for transport policy for the Green Party's parliamentary group in the Bundestag, said, "Decarbonizing road freight transport is an essential building block for reducing CO2 emissions in the transport sector." The switch to electromobility will only work if there is a nationwide charging network, he added. The planned continuous monitoring of the master plan charging infrastructure is therefore logical and important.
Associations demand less bureaucracy
For the BDEW , chief executive Kerstin Andreae said, "After three quarters of a year of work, the master plan charging infrastructure with its 68 individual measures misses the opportunity to specifically remove the brake blocks." She said the federal government should finally make its land available for charging infrastructure. "At the same time, we need more speed in approvals and significantly less bureaucracy in funding programs," Andreae demanded. "The master plan is therefore, unfortunately, an expensive showcase policy," she said in reference to the wide range of envisaged official inspection orders.
"The success of the strategy now depends largely on whether and how the stakeholders are involved in the implementation of the individual measures," commented VKU CEO Ingbert Liebing. He emphasized the importance of municipal companies in the mobility transition, which operate around half of the publicly accessible charging points in Germany. "Sparsely populated regions in the north and northeast of Germany in particular still show gaps in expansion," Liebing recalled. He criticized a planned retrofitting obligation with card readers for already existing charging points.
The Bundesverband E-Mobilität ( BEM ) campaigned for a cross-transport expansion of the charging infrastructure. The charging needs of light vehicles, buses, trains, ships or aircraft should also be taken into account, reminded association president Kurt Sigl. Wolfgang Weber, chairman of the ZVEI management board, wants more "intelligent charging with lower charging power at times when the power is available and the vehicle is stationary for a few hours anyway." This would serve grid stability, said the representative of the electrical and digital industry association.
Author: Susanne Harmsen
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