Bulgaria to get fast charging infrastructure at railway stations

In Bulgaria, several government agencies have agreed to install fast charging stations with up to 600 kW for electric cars and buses at railway stations across the country. Initially, a total of 35 charging stations are to be installed at railway stations in larger cities by the end of 2026. However, the planned project envisages equipping all 249 railway stations with charging infrastructure.

Bulgarien bulgaria eso nric min — Image: Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Bulgaria

A corresponding agreement was signed in the presence of Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications Grozdan Karadjov by the National Railway Infrastructure Company (NRIC), the national electricity grid operator ESO and its subsidiary ESO Charge. It is intended to “mark the start of a national initiative to build charging stations at railway stations across the country, which will serve both private electric vehicles and electric public transport.”

Initially, 35 fast charging stations with a capacity of up to 600 kW each are planned. ESO is investing around ten million euros in the project. “We have chosen railway stations – where road and rail meet,” Transport Minister Grozdan Karadjov told the Bulgarian News Agency. Exactly which stations will be involved is still to be decided.

No information is available yet on the technical details and charging prices. However, the Ministry of Energy announced that the stations should “offer consumers the lowest prices for charging electric vehicles.”

In the long term, all 249 railway stations in the country are to be equipped with charging infrastructure. Karadjov also announced to the Bulgarian News Agency that two further joint projects are already in preparation. They will be announced as soon as the documentation has been finalised. Fast charging stations are also planned along the Struma motorway.

me.government.bg (in Bulgarian), bta.bg

This article was first published by Daniel Bönnighausen for electrive’s German edition