Charging ahead

Audi has opened another of its revolutionary charging hubs, this time in Zurich, demonstrating  how charging and living with electric can and will look in the future. Following on from the hugely successful pilot charging hub in Nuremberg, this latest example of a high-speed charging centre again utilises modular containers which contain used lithium-ion batteries created from disassembled Audi test vehicles. These modules can be formed into any number of configurations to suit the existing site and needs of the area and require only minor power input from the local power grid.

“The second-life batteries serve as buffer storage, the advantage of which is the fact that we don’t need an elaborate, expensive infrastructure with a high-voltage grid and transformers,” explains Martin Wosnitza, Head of Business Innovation and the Audi project leader for the Audi charging hub in Switzerland.

“The hub only requires minor power demands from the local power grid and is is in a position to bring a sustainable quick-charging infrastructure with second-life battery storage to all the places where the power grid would prove insufficient.”

The new charge hub in Zurich differs from the pilot in its configuration and features four covered high-power charging (HPC) points with up to 320kW. Its storage capacity amounts to 1.05 MWh – comparable to the storage capacity of 11 Audi e-tron 55s – and it can supply power for up to 60 electric vehicles per day. The hub also uses 100-percent renewable energy, while a photovoltaic system on the roof over the charging cubes supplies additional green energy.

The charging hub is designed to service all makes of electric vehicle and cars can be charged across the entire width of the space with exceptional accessibility – regardless of where the manufacturer put the charging port. The operating displays at the charging points are also height-adjustable and the areas between the charging cubes and vehicles are wide enough for wheelchair users.

Audi customers can use their myAudi app to book a charging slot in advance for 45 minutes and these reservations remain in place for the first 15 minutes, after which they’ll be canceled in the advent of someone not arriving for their booking for whatever reason.

It’s another way Audi is looking at ways of streamlining its e-mobility offering and making electric vehicle ownership easier. The original Audi charging hub in Nuremberg has not only proved tremendously successful with its combination of convenient charging bays and an attached launch area for customers to to relax or work, that it has been recognised with a coveted Red Dot Award for innovation. It also picked up an ABC Best of Best Award in 2022 in the ‘Mobility & Innovation’ category, showing that Audi’s innovative ways of looking at how charging infrastructure can be developed to slot easily into urban environments can literally change the way people view charging and living with electric in the future.