Opel turning HQ into ‘Electric City’ Rüsselsheim
The city of Rüsselsheim, Opel and the RheinMain University are driving the extension of charging infrastructure. Sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Economics, the installation of around 1,300 charging stations across Opel’s hometown will commence in the coming months.
++ This article has been updated, please continue reading below. ++
Opel’s headquarter in Rüsselsheim thus becomes the centre point for turning Rüsselsheim into the “Electric City”, defined by eventually offering one charge point for every 72 inhabitants. Opel claims this would be the highest density of charging stations per inhabitants in all of the European Union.
The ambitious project that received grants totalling around 12.8 million euros will run through multiple stages until completion in 2020. The planned 1,300 charging stations will then be located in all districts and residential areas, on the Opel premises, on the campus of RheinMain University, at selected supermarkets and shopping centres and on the premises of the municipal clinic (GPR).
Opel’s contribution to the project includes parking areas, which will be fitted with 600 public charging points. In addition, another 400 charging points will be installed on private land, including 350 of these on the Opel premises. CEO Michael Lohscheller said, “this promise is a core pillar of our PACE! strategic plan.”
Mayor Udo Bausch shared the sentiment and added that “the project will strengthen the city as an industrial location and increase our capacity to innovate”.
Particularly thanks to the involvement of RheinMain University, which adds a laboratory perspective and will look into technical topics such as supply stability and network integration, along with socio-economic aspects such as mobility behaviour. Data will enable the scientists to predict future demands placed on the electricity network and help them identify the individual needs of electric car drivers.
In addition to up to 20 charging points, RheinMain University will also install energy storage systems. These are designed to improve the use of renewable energies and therefore minimise any network extension.
Update 28 July 2021
Opel, now belonging to Stellantis, reports progress at its headquarters in Rüsselsheim, also known as Opel Campus. The carmaker now completed the installation of 500 charging points for the company’s electric fleet. Another 540 publicly accessible charging points as part of the ‘Electric City Rüsselsheim’ project are currently being installed by the city in the parking lots around the company headquarters.
However, as indicated above, the project is more comprehensive than the 540 charging points mentioned by Opel. There are plans for another 800 charging points throughout the city; those 540 are just the charging points near Opel. Rüsselsheim has commissioned GP Joule as a general contractor for the installation, and the first charging points are already in operation here.
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