Iberdrola plans Mediterranean mega charger corridor
Spain’s energy company Iberdrola plans to develop the first Mediterranean Corridor for 100% electric transport with heavy-duty EVs in collaboration with transport and logistics company Disfrimur and electronics specialists Ingeteam.
According to the partners, the project includes the procurement of heavy-duty electric vehicles, “extremely” fast charging infrastructure delivering up to one megawatt, and a smart grid. Iberdrola adds this would be the first Mediterranean Corridor primarily catering to heavy-duty electric vehicles and run through the Region of Murcia and the Valencian Community. There is also an option to extend it “to all other national freight corridors” in Spain in the coming years.
For the details, Iberdrola would install high power chargers at Disfrimur’s logistics bases first. The companies stress. However, these would also be open to public use. There’s mention of “very high power chargers for intercity journeys” as well as the deployment of a smart grid to ensure maximum efficiency. Iberdrola’s distribution company, i-DE, will deliver the latter.
The electric charging stations are to be installed in Disfrimur’s logistics centres in Sangonera La Seca (Murcia) and San Isidro (Alicante). Further chargers will follow along the route and on other Disfrimur logistics sites, covering the entire Benicarló (Castellón) – Puerto Lumbreras (Murcia) route, making for a total of more than 450 km of emission-free freight transport routes, Iberdrola says.
Serving 40-ton electric trucks, which the companies do not specify in the announcement, the charging equipment coming from Ingeteam will include truck chargers capable of delivering up to 1 MW. Iberdrola says the development of said charging point follows the future Megawatt Charging System (MCS) standard for rapid charging of heavy vehicles like lorries and buses. It will allow vehicles with 200-600 kWh batteries to be charged in just 20-30 minutes. This will mean increasing the charging voltage to up to 1,500 V with a current of more than 1,000 A.
The initiative for the Mediterranean Corridor has been submitted to the Next Generation EU programme, and Iberdrola says it is “a benchmark in the use of very high-powered chargers”. Transport & Environment is on board as a partner to supply analysis and technical validation. The statement did not disclose details on the budget or precise timing.
On the whole, Iberdrola is investing 150 million euros in the installation of 150,000 charging points in households, businesses, cities and on motorways and interurban roads over the next five years, primarily in Spain. This is part of a larger plan to invest 75 billion euros by 2025 to triple its renewable capacity to almost 100,000 MW.
The group says it has signed more than 50 agreements on infrastructure development with administrations, institutions, companies, petrol stations, dealers and manufacturers of electric vehicles. These include Porsche, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz. The company is also involved in plans for a battery cell factory in Spain.
Iberdrola has also become the first Spanish company to join the Climate Group’s EV100 initiative and has committed to electrifying its entire vehicle fleet.
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