At its annual company press conference, the VW Group announced that it would increase the number of EVs in its ranges it will sell from 50 to 70 by 2028. The Porsche Taycan will follow the Audi e-tron as the second of the Group’s EV models.
And with over 20,000 expressions of interest from buyers, Porsche has already invested heavily on charging technology that will allow users to recharge their Taycan EVs quickly and conveniently.
Early investments in EV fast charging
Together with various OEM and supplier partners, Porsche initiated its ‘Fast Charge’ project in July 2016. The 450kW charging station prototype has been in service in Germany since then, and opens up myriad opportunities to improve EV charging capacity across Europe.
Dr Samir Kadunic, manager of eMobility infrastructure at the Porsche, will present the project at Automotive IQ’s upcoming eMobility 2020 Conference in Berlin.
Electric vehicle charging accelerated
The 450 kW ultra-fast charging station prototype is able to boost a test car with a range of 100 km in just three minutes – this is equivalent to 80% of its total capacity. For reference, Tesla’s newly-launched Supercharger V3 operates at 250kW and can add 120km of range in five minutes to a Tesla Model 3 Long Range.
The Fast Charge project paves the way for bigger station capacities and faster charge times, and has unleashed a technological race to meet consumers’ eMobility expectations.
As reported by Porsche, “the new charging station is suitable for electric models of all brands with the European standard Type 2 variant of the widely used Combined Charging System (CCS), and is now available for use free of charge.”
The test was carried out with a Porsche research vehicle with a net battery capacity of approximately 90kWh, achieving a charging capacity of over 400 kW on the new charging station.
After the announcement in December 2018, VW has confirmed that it is converting its Hanover factory to manufacture EV charging stations with a capacity of 360 kW.
According to futurecar.com, “the chargers aren't for one or two vehicles, either, but can accommodate up to 15 EVs. Maximum capacity is rated at 360kWh, which will allow for a fast-charging feature that can provide vehicles with 80 percent of a full charge in just 17 minutes.”
The Fast Charge Research Project
The Fast Charge project has been running since July 2016, and received €7.8million in funding from the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure. The implementation of the funding guidelines is being coordinated by the German National Organisation for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology (NOW). In addition to the two automotive OEMs, Porsche and BMW, the venture is operated by Allego GmbH. The charging technology has been developed by Phoenix Contact E-Mobility, with electrical engineering by Siemens AG.
As a result, the Fast Charge system has been made widely compatible. “The charging station prototypes presented use the charging plug from the tried-and-tested Combined Charging System (CCS) in the Type 2 variant that is standard for Europe. This charging standard has already proven itself in a wide range of electrified vehicles and is used in many parts of the world.”
There is no doubt that such capacity offering fast, convenient charging, increases the appeal of eMobility – and something that Porsche is already capitalizing on with the announcement that the next-generation Macan SUV will be an EV only.
Improving the available charging capacity to 450kW allows charging times to be significantly reduced, with the company arguing that the charging capacity of its new Fast Chargers is three to nine times as high as what is currently possible with DC rapid charging stations.
The Fast Charge project examines what technical conditions need to be fulfilled in terms of vehicles and infrastructure in order to allow extremely high charging capacities to be applied.
The prototype charging stations are located in in Jettingen-Scheppach, near the A8 motorway between Ulm and Augsburg in Germany. They are currently available for use with all CCS-enabled vehicles, free of charge. Porsche says: “Depending on the model of vehicle, the new ultra-fast charging station can be used for vehicles with 400-volt and those with 800-volt battery systems. In each case the charging capacity provided automatically adjusts to the vehicle’s maximum permitted charging capacity.”
When using the charger, Porsche’s research vehicle can achieve a charging capacity of 400kW initially, which the firm claims is a first for a passenger car. This is made possible thanks to an innovative cooling system that ensures even, gentle temperature control in the battery cells.
Depending on the model of vehicle, the new ultra-fast charging station can be used for vehicles with 400-volt and those with 800-volt battery systems – the Porsche Taycan is likely to be the first series production car that uses the latter.
The system will be complimented by Porsche's own Turbo Charging system, which gives a 400km range charge in 20 minutes. A pilot project with two chargers is currently underway at the Porsche dealership in Berlin-Adlershof.
Betting Hard on eMobility
Porsche is set to invest more than €6 billion in electric mobility by 2022, doubling its previously planned expenditure for electromobility. Of the additional €3 billion, around €500 million will be used to develop the models and versions in the Taycan range, one if which is previewed by the Taycan Cross Turismo concept. Porsche will also be investing around €700 million in new technologies, charging infrastructure and smart mobility.
- Interested in fast charging solutions for eMobility? Check out the agenda of Automotive IQ's eMobility Charging Infrastructure Europe 2020 conference in Berlin. And for all our other conferences, see the Events page.