Mercedes commissions its first Charging Hub – in China
The facility in the capital of Sichuan Province in southwest China offers four fast-charging columns, each with one charging point, as seen in pictures published by Mercedes-Benz on LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter). The LinkedIn post mentions a charging capacity of 480 kW – but it is unclear whether this applies to each charging point or the entire facility. Charging points with 480 kW are already on the market in China, and GAC Aion demonstrated such a charging process with a peak output of 481 kW in the summer of 2021.
It has been confirmed that the charging stations support Plug&Charge and have dynamic load management. Mercedes customers will also be able to reserve the charging points with one click using the “Mercedes me” app. The location should offer “ample parking and various nearby amenities for a comfortable waiting experience.” But it is not covered.
Mercedes’ fast-charging network is open to all brands, meaning they can also be used with electric cars from other manufacturers. However, special functions, such as reservation, are only intended for the company’s own customers.
Chengdu won’t be the only Charging Hub for long. The first locations in the USA and Europe will follow in November, specifically in Atlanta and Mannheim in Germany. Mercedes-Benz wants to have more than 2,000 charging hubs with 10,000 charging points worldwide by the end of this decade.
The Stuttgart-based company presented the plans for the brand’s own HPC network in January 2023. Depending on the region and location, the fast-charging hubs will offer four to twelve and a maximum of up to 30 high-power chargers with up to 350 kW of power. Last week, the specially founded subsidiary Mercedes-Benz HPC North America partnered with the Simon Property Group to build fast chargers at 55 shopping malls for some of the US charging parks.
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