European fast charging vendor Jolt Energy plans to install thousands of new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across European and North American cities over the next few years.
The Dublin and Munich-based company said the demands for EV charging stations will jump significantly in the coming years as the automotive transition to electrified models continues to accelerate. Most automotive OEMs plan to move to electrified models as their main fleet by 2030 or 2035 in both Europe and North America.
Jolt installs EV fast charging stations in urban areas, and it combines both charging stations and battery storage. The stations are capable of up to 420 kW power and can be connected to existing low-voltage power grid with battery storage providing additional energy for the entire charging process. This enables up to 100 kilometers of driving range to be charged in about 5 minutes, Jolt said.
The expansion of fast-charging infrastructure in Europe and North America is made possible due to a new investment in Jolt from InfraRed Capital Partners via a $150 million allocation.
“Our ultra-fast charging stations equipped with powerful battery storage are the missing link in accelerating the energy and transport transition in cities,” said Maurice Neligan, CEO of Jolt. “Ultra-fast charging systems are the key to unlocking the potential of EVs for city residents.”
This is the second major installment of an EV charging station built with battery storage. Earlier this month, energy giant Shell and Volkswagen developed a new type of fast-charging station called Eli Flexpole that combines a traditional charging station with a battery storage system to use low power grid as the main energy used in the stations.
The goal with the Shell station as well as the Jolt system is to lessen the burden on the electric power grid as more demand is needed due to the significant uptick in the number of EVs on the road.
California already has surpassed 1.5 million EV sales about two years ahead of its planned schedule and this year, the International Energy Agency forecasts nearly one in five cars that will be sold will be an electric model with sales leaping to 35% of all car sales globally. In 2022, the share of EVs rose to 14% of all vehicles and is expected to rise to 18% of all cars on the road this year, according to the IEA.
