Mercedes opens further HPC charging parks in China

Mercedes-Benz has put a number of additional fast-charging locations in China into operation. The first Mercedes Charging Hubs in Europe and the USA have also been online for several weeks.

Since the opening of its first charging hub in Chengdu, China, in autumn 2023, Mercedes-Benz has commissioned further fast chargers of its own in Foshan, Qingdao, Chongqing, Suzhou, Wuhan, Kunming and Changzhou, among others, as the company wrote on LinkedIn. However, no further details are given about the new locations.

However, the debut facility in Chengdu, China, provides an indication of the car manufacturer’s selected approach. The charging park there consists of four columns, each with one charging point – making it one of the smaller parks. The LinkedIn post published at the time mentioned a charging capacity of 480 kW, but it was left open whether this applies per charging point or for the entire facility. It was confirmed that the charging points support Plug&Charge and have dynamic load management. Mercedes customers will also be able to reserve the charging points with one click using the ‘Mercedes me’ app. The location should offer “sufficient parking spaces and various amenities nearby for a comfortable waiting experience”.

The locations of the Mercedes fast-charging network are basically open to all brands, meaning they can also be used with electric cars from other manufacturers. However, special functions, such as reservation, are only intended for the company’s own customers.

The Stuttgart-based company presented its plans for a brand-owned HPC network in January 2023. Depending on the region and location, the fast-charging hubs will offer four to twelve and a maximum of up to 30 high-power chargers with an output of up to 350 kW. By the end of this decade, Mercedes-Benz is planning more than 2,000 charging hubs worldwide with a total of 10,000 charging points. Mercedes-Benz connected the first parks in Europe and the USA to the grid in Mannheim and Sandy Springs in November 2023, while the specially founded subsidiary Mercedes-Benz HPC North America entered into a partnership with the Simon Property Group in November 2023 to build fast chargers at 55 shopping malls for some of the US charging parks.

In China, Mercedes-Benz is also planning a joint fast-charging network with BMW with at least 1,000 locations and around 7,000 connections. The partners recently received the green light from the EU for the Chinese joint venture.

linkedin.com