Mercedes to build first own fast chargers before 2023

After Mercedes-Benz announced far-reaching plans to build its own global HPC network in North America, Europe, China at the beginning of this year, the company is now giving more details. The development is to begin in the fourth quarter of 2023 in the USA and in the European countries of Germany and France.

This was stated by Franz Reiner, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Mobility, to the Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA). In the USA, the first 20 charging parks, each with several charging points, are planned for this year. Reiner did not give an exact number for Europe. There are no indications in the DPA report as to whether more or fewer charging parks are to be built in Europe this year than in the USA.

Mercedes announced that it would build its own HPC network with more than 10,000 charging points at the CES in January 2023. The stations are to offer up to 350 kW of charging power each and be publicly accessible. However, Mercedes customers are to be given preferential access, for example by being able to reserve charging points.

Of the total of more than 10,000 HPC charging points by the end of this decade, more than 2,000 are to be built in the USA and Europe respectively, the rest in China and “other important markets”. According to Reiner, Mercedes is investing “a low single-digit billion euro amount” for this.

However, Mercedes only sees its own fast-charging parks as a supplement to the overall infrastructure, so the network is unlikely to become so dense that long-distance travel is only (conveniently) possible with Mercedes charging stations. “The charging infrastructure still has some potential,” Reiner told DPA. “We will definitely not be able to cover everything with our fast charging stations.”

It is already certain that Mercedes will work with MN8 Energy and ChargePoint to build the US charging parks. By 2027, a network of more than 400 locations in total with more than 2,500 HPC chargers is to be created in the US and Canada. Mercedes and MN8 will share the costs. Mercedes manager Reiner did not name a partner for Europe or China in the DPA interview.

handelsblatt.com (in German)