Barcelona charges EVs with recuperated braking energy from metro trains

The first of seven planned EV fast-charging stations, part of the MetroCHARGE project, has gone into operation in Barcelona. It is powered exclusively by energy recovered during the metro trains' braking process and from photovoltaic panels installed on all available roofs of the metro stations.

The new station is located on the Rambla de Marina in L’Hospitalet, close to the Line 1 Metro-stop Bellvitge. It offers two 50 kW chargers with three connectors each, which can be used simultaneously. Depending on the connector used, EVs can charge there for a maximum of 30 minutes, one or two hours. The kilowatt-hour costs 30 cents. If an EV stays plugged in longer than the maximum duration allowed, the driver is charged 0.399 euros per minute.

However, the real innovation is where this charger (and the six others) gets its power from. It recuperates the energy produced during the braking of underground trains (or metro) and uses solar energy from solar panels installed on the rooftops of metro stations. The fast chargers are thus autonomous from the grid.

“The fact that the electric lines can operate with the metro’s surplus energy represents an important step forward for more sustainable and clean mobility in the Barcelona metropolis,” Carlos Cordón, Vice President of Mobility, Transport and Sustainability of the AMB, told the media. “It is great news for the decarbonised cities that we want, both present and future .”

All of the MetroCHARGE charging stations are part of the Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB) charging station network. To use them, customers must register via the AMB app. As mentioned above, Barcelone will set up another six MetroCHARGE charging stations, two of which will be located in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat.

forococheselectricos.com, tot-hospitalet.cat (both in Spanish), amb.cat (in Catalan)