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The new charging park offers 4 fast chargers and 4 normal charging points. Image: SWHT/Rathke
Akkodis and Power Innovation Stromversorgungstechnik develop new concept for charging parks
Fast charging stations make traveling with electric vehicles convenient. However, they require strong grid connections, which are not available everywhere. In Bremen, there is now an alternative that could accelerate the expansion of the charging network – at its heart: an intelligent container.
According to the Federal Network Agency, there are around 100,000 public charging points in Germany. A fifth of these are so-called fast-charging stations (more than 22 kilowatts of charging power). Of these, only around a third have an output of more than 150 kilowatts, meaning they can charge a large electric car to 80 percent of the vehicle's battery capacity within 5 to 15 minutes.
Too few for the future. A study by the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) estimates that Germany will need five to eight times as many charging points by 2030.
A challenging task, especially for fast charging. This is because several fast-charging stations in a parking lot require correspondingly strong grid connections, which are not already in the ground everywhere. However, expanding the grid is expensive and takes time, as it often requires structural measures, such as new transformer stations, which in turn require approvals, building applications, and investments.
Opening of the Airportstadt e-charging park, from left to right: Andreas Bovenschulte, Bernhard Böden (GF Power Innovation Stromversorgungs GmbH), Reiner Oldewurtel (Vice President AKKODIS Germany GmbH), Ralf-Jörg Kadenbach (Board Member IG Airportstadt e.V.) Image: SWHT/Rathke
Battery provides high power
The Bremen site of technology group Akkodis Deutschland and Achim's Power Innovation Stromversorgungstechnik GmbH have found a solution. They combine conventional charging stations with a battery storage unit housed in an air-conditioned sea container.
Intelligent power electronics are integrated into this charging container. “We can store up to 520 kilowatt hours of battery capacity and our power electronics there. The 20-foot container can be accommodated in any parking space,” says Reiner Oldewurtel, Vice President AKKODIS Germany Aerospace & Defense.
The highlight: the charging container buffers the power demand peaks that only occur when one or more electric vehicles are connected to the fast chargers. If the charging stations are not needed and the required charging power falls below the grid power, the container charges the batteries from the grid. In this way, the system achieves a charging capacity of up to 600 kW with a maximum grid capacity of 180 kW (a common value in urban regions). “This allows us to balance out peaks in demand and protect the grid. No investment in infrastructure is required, a normal commercial connection is sufficient,” explains Oldewurtel.
Airport-Stadt Bremen with new charging park
The system is already working in reality. At the Europa-Center in Bremen Airport – also the headquarters of Akkodis Germany Aerospace & Defence in Bremen – the two technology partners inaugurated the first charging park in May 2024. A total of eight charging points are available here, including four power-hungry DC fast chargers.
The project was created on a site belonging to the Airbus plant in Bremen with the support of the Europa-Center parent company. “We are delighted with this support, which opens up more opportunities for electric mobility for employees in the airport city. The e-charging park is open to the public – it can be used by all electric vehicles and e-trucks and works with all standard payment cards,” Oldewurtel continues.
A look inside the container: Batteries and power electronics have a modular design. Image: SWHT/Rathke
Will loading containers soon be available nationwide?
The Bremen station is still in the pilot phase; the team of engineers is collecting data from real-life operation in order to learn more about daily charging behavior and to optimize the charging electronics.
The inventors now want to sell the system to companies and local authorities: “We are creating a powerful alternative on company premises or in urban areas where there are hardly any opportunities for structural measures. We can also step in at locations where a charging station is only needed temporarily – such as remote construction sites.”
The system was designed to be modular from the outset. This keeps maintenance costs low and allows the system to be expanded or adapted to actual requirements at a later date. This technical solution can also be operated with electricity from a photovoltaic system, which is ideal for logistics companies.
Although containers and charging stations cost more than simple charging points, the faster availability and simpler structural integration offset the higher costs, says the Managing Director. “We expect our technical solution with battery storage to pay for itself in two to four years with average capacity utilization.”
Integrated into the public charging infrastructure, visitors to the airport city of Bremen can now use the charging park. Image: SWHT/Rathke
From the aviation to the mobility sector
For Oldewurtel and his team, the foray into electromobility is not their usual field of activity. The actual expertise at the Bremen site lies in the aerospace, defense, and naval sectors. Currently, 160 of the 450 employees of Akkodis Germany AS&D are working at the site located on Airbus Allee 5 in Bremen.
The company supports development processes from initial analyses and studies to prototypes, certification, and production. The engineers are also closely involved in the current development of sustainable aircraft, both from manufacturers, such as Airbus, and from suppliers. “We have been growing by 25 percent each year for the past four years, have hired 140 employees in 2023 alone and are constantly looking for more. You can see how high the demand for technology is here in Bremen,” says Oldewurtel.
Here, they are active in the civil and military aviation sector as well as in aerospace and the navy. It is precisely this mix of different tasks that the Managing Director appreciates: “Bremen has so much to offer. We employ people from 25 nations, who we welcome here in the Hanseatic city and train or educate, including at our own academy. We are planning to work more closely with Bremen University of Applied Sciences; the location is very important to us.”
In addition to Bremen, the Akkodis Aerospace & Defense division also has locations in Hamburg, Ingolstadt, Oberpfaffenhofen, Donauwörth, Manching, and recently even Bangalore. As a frequent traveler, Oldewurtel enjoys the convenience of having the company headquarters in Bremen Airport. The distance to the airport is short and the highway is right on the doorstep. And now, thanks to the charging park, he can also recharge his own electric car in no time at all.
