The new ultra-fast stations can deliver emission-free energy for more than 200 extra kilometres of driving within 10 minutes. In terms of power charging, electric mobility is thus gradually catching up with conventionally powered cars. “The Czech Republic already has one of the most robust and fastest-charging networks in Europe. There are 22 charging stations per 100 electric cars in the Czech Republic, compared to the EU average of 15. The share of fast and ultra-fast charging stations in the Czech Republic is 57 percent, compared to the European average of 9 percent. This is, of course, partly due to the still low share of electric vehicles in the Czech Republic, but that will change, and we want to move to the next level. Ultra-fast stands that significantly reduce the time spent refuelling are one of the solutions. Another is charging hubs, where drivers do not have to wait as long for the preceding electric car to recharge,” says Pavel Cyrani, Vice-Chairman of the Management Board of ČEZ.
Ultrafast ČEZ Stands in the Czech Republic
Locale
Number of stations
Motorway
Power
Pumpa Pruhonice
4
D1, km 6
180 kW
McDonald’s Loket
2
D1, km 66
150 kW, 300 kW
Duhová, Prague
1
Prague Trunk Road (‘Magistrála’)
175 kW
Šlovice fuel station
1
D5, km 83, direction Rozvadov
225 kW
Olympia Pilsen
1
D5, km 76
300 kW
McDonald’s Unčovice
1
D35, km 253
225 kW
“We see from customer charging data that, for three-quarters of customers, saving time when charging in the city or on a long-distance journey is a major added value, despite the higher price. Thus, we will gradually replace the existing stations in some locales with new stands with higher capacity,” adds Tomáš Dzurilla, Director of the Electromobility Department at ČEZ.
ČEZ operates a total of 465 public charging stations throughout the Czech Republic. Last year, drivers used more than 3.5 million kWh of emission-free energy from the network, and this year the threshold of 4 million kWh is expected to be broken. The total installed capacity of the ČEZ network will reach 33 MW by the end of this year, which is, for example, the equivalent of a medium-sized hydroelectric power plant supplying emission-free electricity to households in a city of 80,000. By 2030, ČEZ estimates that it will increase the total capacity of charging stations in its network more than four times, especially through the development of high-capacity hubs – locales where 6 or more e-cars can be charged at the same time, thanks to ultra-fast racks.
Last year, for the first time ever, the country’s largest domestic network of public charging stands, comparable to mid-sized fuel station chains, grew by more than 100 new stands in a single year, and a similar number will be added again this year. It currently has over 460 stations and can serve up to 930 e-cars at any one time. More than 200 stations have been built thanks to the European Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) grant and the Operational Programme Transport, and ČEZ has built dozens more with its own funds.
When using the network, the user is identified by an RFID card or the FUTUR/E/GO application before recharging. The application increases the effectiveness of charging, by pairing the mobile phone with the charging station, locating the nearest charging point, and showing the current range time or showing the current occupancy of each stand. Today, more than 80% of the ČEZ network consists of 50 kW charging stands, but the share of ultra-fast stations will grow in the future.
