German Enercon opens first 350 kW HPC charger

Enercon has opened its first High Power Charger (HPC) in the town of Aurich, north Germany. The prototype station delivers 350 kW and marks the wind power company’s entry into the ultra-fast charging market with renewables.

Enercon’s first station of the type E-Charger 600 stands at the EEZ, a centre for professional development with a focus on renewable energy in Friesland, which borders the ever windy North Sea. As operator, the utility of Aurich has signed up.

For Enercon, renewable energy and electric transport belong together. Jens Winkler, who leads the energy business at Enercon, calls the combination of technology and concepts a “coupling of sectors” or “systemic solution” that he deems essential for the energy turnaround (Energiewende) Germany has been working towards.

The E-Charger 600 uses CCS and utilises technology Enercon developed to connect stationery energy storage solutions to the grid as well as components from its wind turbines. Power Innovation based in Achim have added their power electronics.

To guarantee high power charging at 350 kW, Enercon wants to add a battery unit to its charger, which not only equals out peaks at the charging stop but also stores renewable energy. However, the prototype in Aurich is missing the back up for now. Once completed, the solution will be capable to power up to four charge columns with 350 kW.

To manage such power, Enercon uses its expertise gained from wind turbines, where energy must be both stored but also dispensed in a controlled manner when feeding into the grid. This means the E-Charger 600 will eventually be able to serve as V2G solution, or have that same stabilising effect.

The commercial rollout of the E-Charger 600 is set for this Spring, first in Germany, where locations at gas stops and utilities are currently being negotiated. Other European countries are to follow. For Enercon it is important to stress the idea to enable high power charging with energy from renewables.

electrive.net (in German)