Guillermo López Arias, Sales Manager for Iberia and Latin America at Kempower, discusses the challenges faced by electromobility concerning charging infrastructure, during the “International e-Mobility Summit 2023” organized by Mobility Portal Europe.
In this regard, he emphasizes the need to install more low-power chargers in public spaces and promote the creation of “multimodal” stations.
“If I want to charge my car at the supermarket, knowing that I’ll be there for an hour, a 50-kilowatt charger is enough to fill 60% of the battery,” declares López Arias.
He adds, “We should provide more chargers with not very high power because ultra-fast charging is not necessary in cities, and if customers have a convenient place to charge their cars, the market will expand.”
On the other hand, it is worth mentioning that more and more companies are considering the Megawatt Charging System (MCS) as an effective option.
However, the Sales Manager at Kempower indicates that using this system is only suitable for vehicles that need to cover long distances or travel on roads without enough chargers.
“The MCS is coming, and factories are heading in that direction. We need to align ourselves with the protocols, connections, and standards that are coming to the market because they involve a lot of power, with figures of a thousand volts or three thousand amperes,” he asserts.
“This is something we need to analyze, but we can’t forget about CCS because the MCS will be suitable for long distances, but not for stable stops of a couple of hours or overnight charging,” he clarifies.
For this reason, López Arias believes that it is essential to promote the creation of “multimodal” stations.
“We have to focus on these versatile stations because we need to be flexible and able to supply energy to a van, a car, and a truck,” he acknowledges.
He adds, “We must be prepared and provide customers with all the necessary tools to charge in a couple of minutes or overnight, and that’s what we are working on at Kempower.”
Kempower opens two factories
This year the company inaugurated a 10,000 square meter production plant in Finland.
Additionally, they announced that they will set up a new 14,000 square meter facility in the United States.
“We want to increase our production and develop more charging stations because our customers are demanding it,” comments López Arias.
“This industry is advancing rapidly, and we have to move with it, which is why we are opening new facilities, hiring staff, and contributing expertise to the market,” he adds.
Read more: Kempower to Provide Chargers for the Arctic Race of Norway
Kempower highlights the importance of charge predictability
Regarding energy storage with batteries, Kempower’s Sales Manager points out that doing so allows for “predictability” when powering electric vehicles.
“In Spain, there are many recreational areas where there is no availability of energy, and for this reason, it is convenient for charging service providers to have battery storage,” López Arias explains.
He adds, “If I have it fully charged, and I know that a truck will arrive at the station at a certain time, I can determine a predictable charge, which would lower the service costs.“
Finally, it is worth noting that López Arias recognizes that truck charging should take place on the outskirts of cities to avoid “occupying so many spaces.”
Below is Guillermo López Arias’s participation in the panel “Projects 2023: New charging infrastructure trends in European cities”:
