Gothenburg expands wireless charging for taxis
The conclusion of a successful three-year project and plans for its expansion was announced by InductEV, Volvo Cars and Gothenburg partners at the EVS38 conference currently underway in Gothenburg. The initial project trialled a fleet of 20 electric Volvo XC40 taxis charged wirelessly via two charging stations with four in-ground chargers, each delivering up to 75 kW, at Lindholmen Science Park and Sahlgrenska University Hospital.
The existing wireless charging stations are now being transitioned from test operation to permanent use, while a third inductive charging station has been installed at the Gothia Tower Hotel, which is part of the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Center.
The project partners reported that inductive charging was preferred by the drivers involved. Drivers said that inductive charging is especially useful at major travel centres such as train stations, airports, hotels, and at city destinations such as healthcare facilities, amusement parks, business districts, and conference locations. The inductive charging pads provided flawless energy delivery in rainy, snowy, hot, cold, dirty, and icy conditions.
Drivers reportedly found the technology convenient and easy to use with complete hands-free operation. The three-year test concluded 10,000 charging events with 100% uptime, 140 MWh of energy transferred, and 5 million km travelled, which the partners note is equivalent to 100 laps around the world.
InductEV, which provides the inductive charging technology and operational frameworks, has accumulated years of experience in numerous inductive charging projects for publicly accessible electric vehicles. The company, formerly called Momentum Dynamics, has initiated projects in North America and Europe, recently announcing a collaboration with California-based bus manufacturer ENC. Other projects in the US are being conducted with municipal transit agencies, including multiple fleets in Washington State, California, Oregon, Indianapolis, and Martha’s Vineyard.
The project in Gothenburg, Sweden, includes Business Region Göteborg, Cabonline, Göteborg Energi, Vattenfall InCharge and Volvo Cars. The project is supported by the Gothenburg Green City Zone initiative, which focuses on testing new technologies and collaborating to develop and scale up system solutions aimed at ensuring 100% emission-free traffic by 2030.
Patrik Andersson, CEO, Business Region Göteborg, said: “We have found wireless charging to be attractive for taxi fleets and other transporters at key locations within the city, with great potential of supporting our city’s climate targets of lowering the emissions from the traffic system.”
The Chief Operations Officer at Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers, Joachim Hult, noted the way sustainable development moves forward when local and international partners work together: “Through our role in the Gothenburg Green City Zone, we want to contribute to more sustainable transport in the city. Making space for this new wireless charging station and powering it with renewable electricity is a natural fit with that ambition.”
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