Mercedes opens first charging hub in Germany
Mercedes Benz announced has now opened its first charging park in Germany as part of its own European HPC network, as the carmaker announced in summer just passed. Electric cars and vans can now be charged with up to 300 kW at the Mercedes-Benz branch in Gottlieb-Daimler-Straße in Mannheim.
After Atlanta (USA), where Mercedes is relying on MN8 Energy as a partner for the construction, Chengdu (China) and Foshan (China), Mannheim is already the fourth fast-charging park that Mercedes-Benz is putting into operation worldwide. More are to be launched in the USA and China by the end of the year. In Europe, Mercedes will be opening additional charging parks in Italy, Spain and France, among others, from 2024, alongside additional locations in Germany.
In Mannheim, the covered charging park is equipped with photovoltaic solar panels. The location is also barrier-free and offers a drive-through option. A total of six Hyperchargers from Alpitronic are available, each with a CCS connection. The German luxury carmaker says each charger has only one connection to ensure maximum energy reaches the charging vehicle. Due to a special configuration, the hub’s chargers have a maximum of 300 kW per charging point per connection.
The Mercedes-Benz charging parks are integrated into the Mercedes me Charge digital charging network. In electric vehicles from Mercedes-Benz, the navigation system shows the exact position and current availability of charging points. At the same time, Mercedes customers will soon be able to use a reservation function at the company’s charging parks. At the charging station, Mercedes customers will be authenticated via the display in the MBUX multimedia system, the Mercedes me app, the Mercedes charging card or, in future, directly via Plug&Charge.
“Mercedes-Benz customers also benefit from attractive conditions, such as a welcome tariff. This enables free charging via the Mercedes me Charge charging service at all new Mercedes-Benz Charging Hubs within the first few months,” according to a press release. After this period, the costs specified in the Mercedes me Charge tariffs will apply. While third-party brands can also use the HPC charging parks, the car manufacturer has not provided any pricing information in this case.
Mercedes-Benz is relying on E.ON as a strategic partner to drive forward the expansion of charging hubs in Europe. In future, the energy company will support the search for locations, planning, construction, operation and accompanying services for the fast-charging parks planned in Europe. This also includes “smart solutions such as predictive maintenance of the charging infrastructure based on artificial intelligence and, in the future, further convenient functions for customers” from reservations to Plug&Charge. In addition, E.ON will contribute its expertise and market knowledge of intelligent energy management and provide support with energy supply.
Mercedes Benz plans to expand its global fast-charging network to over 2,000 charging points by the end of 2024, including more than 200 in Europe. By the end of the decade, more than 2,000 Mercedes Benz charging parks with over 10,000 fast-charging points are planned worldwide.
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