Automotive

I think they'll survive. The charging technology on the infrastructure side uses hardware that's been around for ages. Even 800 volt/350kw chargers are fairly straightforward engineering, and most of the challenges relate to the battery pack, management software, and cooling system that needs to handle that onslaught. So most of the challenge is in the engineering of the car, not the charger.

Also, for anyone who has a freestanding home, that's where you will do most of your charging. Most people charge at home during the night, commute locally, and don't travel the 200+ miles daily necessary to exhaust a modern electric car's battery on the road.

In the end, the German charger networks just need to be sufficient to handle the cars traveling as inter-city traffic. It's also unlikely that all travelers will need a full-soak 100% charge. Many will be looking to top off 50-100 miles in somewhere between 10 and 30 minutes with 150-350kw DC fast chargers coming online.

Curbside charging in residential areas needs to be more common, but these areas already are highly electrified. Residents who live in apartments or lack driveways will need access to chargers when they park on the street. But these can be considered similar to home chargers and need only replenish a battery overnight. They don't need to be able to deep fry a pig in 80 seconds like the monster machines lining the highway.

Best,

Tim

  login to reply