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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
idw - Informationsdienst
Wissenschaft
On 29 September, the first public megawatt charging system (MCS) for battery-electric trucks in Germany was ceremoniously switched on at the Lipperland Süd service station in the presence of Christian Hirte, the Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister of Transport. This is part of the HoLa project, “HoLa – High-performance charging for long-haul trucking”, which is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Transport and the EU. This marked a decisive step toward emission-free long-haul trucking that was taken together with representatives from science, industry, and research.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI and the P3 Group are coordinating HoLa’s project consortium, which is installing MCS (megawatt charging system) points at a total of four sites along key highway sections in Germany. The goal is to test the technology under real-world conditions and lay the foundation for a nationwide ramp-up of charging infrastructure for heavy goods vehicles.
Prof. Patrick Plötz, the overall coordinator of the HoLa project, which is led by Fraunhofer ISI, commented: “Megawatt charging marks the start of a new chapter in electric logistics. For the first time, heavy-duty trucks can be charged for a range of hundreds of kilometers in just 30 to 45 minutes; this is the prerequisite for an economically viable electrification of long-haul trucking. The HoLa project demonstrates that charging infrastructure, grid connection and vehicles can already work together today, if all the stakeholders pull in the same direction.”
Charging capacities of up to 1.2 megawatts
The charging point at Lipperland Süd on the German Autobahn A2 uses the new MCS standard, which enables charging capacities of up to 1.2 megawatts. The four European truck manufacturers in the project are actively involved in developing and testing the standard with their trucks.
In addition to demonstrating the technology, the project also encompasses extensive analyses of grid integration, site selection, economic efficiency, and user acceptance. The findings flow directly into plans for developing charging infrastructure at the national and EU levels.
Christian Hirte, the Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry of Transport: “With HoLa, we are putting a key technology for climate-friendly freight traffic on the road. For the first time, megawatt charging makes it possible for heavy-duty trucks to charge for long distances in an extremely short time. This will make the use of battery-electric trucks over long distances more flexible and more economical. Projects such as HoLa show how politics, research and industry are working together to accelerate the decarbonization of road freight transport.”
About the HoLa project
The project “High-performance charging for long-haul trucking (HoLa)” is funded with 12 million euros by the German Federal Ministry for Transport as part of its electric mobility funding program. It is a technology testing project, implemented under the overall concept of climate-friendly commercial vehicles. Funding for this measure is also provided by the German Recovery and Resilience Plan (DARP), and the European Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) in the NextGenerationEU program. The funding guideline is coordinated by NOW GmbH and implemented by Project Management Jülich (PtJ). The project consortium comprises 13 partners, including vehicle manufacturers, energy providers, grid operators, highway management, and researchers. Fraunhofer ISI oversees overall project management and scientific coordination.
The role of the consortium partners in the project
• Fraunhofer ISI is in charge of managing the consortium and of the scientific coordination of the overall project.
• P3 Automotive GmbH is responsible for operational project management within the consortium. Paul Vigener, Senior Consultant Energy & Charging: “The planning phase of the MCS pilot project has been successfully completed. Major hurdles for the high-performance charging of trucks have been overcome. With MCS, the next step for this technology is imminent, enabling more flexible route planning for long-haul electric trucks. We are at the forefront of this technology and are now commencing operation, which will test the solutions developed under real-world conditions for the first time.”
• EnBW mobility+ operates some of the charging points in the project and ensures they run smoothly. Isabel Dorner, product manager for electric mobility: “The electrification of heavy-duty transport is one of the biggest challenges to meeting climate targets in the transport sector. We hope to contribute valuable insights to the research project with our expertise and the experience gained from constructing our EnBW fast-charging network.”
• ABB E-mobility is providing the charging infrastructure for the first public MCS point in the HoLa project at the Lipperland Süd service station. As a partner for cross-industry collaboration, ABB shows how decarbonizing transport can be achieved comprehensively and economically.
• Die Autobahn GmbH des Bundes (a German company that acts as a federal-level infrastructure operator for German highways) is working closely with the HoLa project and provides the land needed along the highway. Elfriede Sauerwein-Braksiek, Director of the Westphalia branch of the Autobahn GmbH des Bundes: “Transit traffic and therefore most of Germany’s freight traffic passes through Westphalia. We are constantly working on innovative solutions for tomorrow’s infrastructure and are delighted to support the development of new drive systems, especially as we ourselves use an electric truck for winter road maintenance here on the A2.”
• Heliox provides charging infrastructure and integrates this at the designated sites.
• Daimler Truck, MAN, Scania and Volvo provide and operate the battery-electric trucks.
– Christian Wilz, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Trucks & FUSO at Daimler Truck Germany: “Electrifying heavy-duty transport requires powerful infrastructure for charging trucks. The HoLa charging hub and our eActros 600 show that zero-emission long-haul transport is becoming a reality.”
– Markus Weckesser, Managing Director & Vice President Volvo Trucks Deutschland: “Together with our partners, we are sending a clear signal with HoLa: Electric mobility in heavy-duty transport is becoming a reality. Volvo Trucks is proud to be a pioneer, actively driving the transformation toward sustainable logistics."
– Stefan Ziegert, Driving the Shift Director, Scania Deutschland: “Scania, a pioneer in sustainable transport solutions, is supporting the Federal Ministry of Transport‘s HoLa project by building powerful charging infrastructure to ensure we are prepared for the electric future of heavy-duty transport.”
– Dr. Frederik Zohm, Executive Board member for Research & Development at MAN Truck & Bus: “Megawatt charging will be a game changer for long-distance freight traffic and regular coach routes as well. This will reduce charging times so much that vehicles can operate over long distances without restrictions, just as they do today.”
• Fraunhofer IAO provides scientific support for the demonstration and analyzes operational aspects.
• The University of Stuttgart explores the economic efficiency of charging and provides support in analyzing resilience.
• Bauhaus-Universität Weimar analyzes organizational models for charging electric trucks.
• TU Berlin collects and analyzes charging and consumption data and creates demand forecasts for a Germany-wide network of MCS points based on a powerful simulation model.
• TU Dortmund analyzes questions of grid integration. Prof. Christian Rehtanz: “The research has shown that there are no insurmountable obstacles to integrating charging hubs in the grid, but that smart and detailed development plans are needed.”
• Shell is building and operating charging infrastructure for the project at several sites. Felix Faber, Chairman of the Management Board of Shell Deutschland GmbH: “Shell is supporting the transport sector to reduce CO2 emissions and remain competitive. We will soon be opening further high-performance charging sites in Lehre and Wustermark, and in Hamburg, the largest testing center for charging infrastructure in Germany with charging points and charging capacities of up to 5 megawatts.”
• Andreas Rade, Managing Director of the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA): “HoLa demonstrates that the necessary conditions for developing a nationwide network of high-performance charging points can be created if industry, research and politics work together closely. The German Association of the Automotive Industry VDA is proud to be the patron of this project.”
Media contact:
Anne-Catherine Jung & Dr. Jacob Leidenberger
Heads of Press and Communications
Phone: +49 721 6809-100/-172
Email: presse@isi.fraunhofer.de
The Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI analyzes the origins and impacts of innovations. We research the short- and long-term developments of innovation processes and the impacts of new technologies and services on society. On this basis, we are able to provide our clients from industry, politics and science with recommendations for action and perspectives for key decisions. Our expertise is founded on our scientific competence as well as an interdisciplinary and systemic research approach.
Prof. Dr. Patrick Plötz
Coordinator of Business Unit Energy Economics
Phone: +49 721 6809-0
https://hochleistungsladen-lkw.de/hola-en/ High-performance charging for long-haul trucking (HoLa)
https://www.isi.fraunhofer.de/en/presse/2025/presseinfo-16-megawattladen-hochlei... Press Release with photos
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