Agrola announces its first truck charger near Bern

Since 2016, Agrola has been working in partnership with the Landi Aare agricultural cooperative to promote the expansion of car charging infrastructure in rural areas. Now, for the first time, the company is announcing the construction of an electric truck charging station with a charging capacity of up to 600 kW. This, along with a new fast-charging station for cars with up to 400 kW, is located at a recently renovated and expanded petrol station on Bernstrasse in Konolfingen, about 20 kilometres southeast of Bern. The petrol station, charging station and car wash are supplied with electricity by a microgrid with an integrated PV system (“for 340,000 kilowatt hours of solar power per year”) and storage.

According to the partners, the investment costs amount to 3.5 million Swiss francs, equivalent to around 3.78 million euros, and were borne by the Landi Aare cooperative. They describe the Konolfingen site as “one of the first in Switzerland where trucks can be charged with up to 600 kilowatts.” The high charging capacity is made possible, among other things, by a special cooling system that efficiently dissipates the heat from the cables and plugs, according to those responsible.

As can be seen in the press photos, the truck charging system is from i-charging. According to a LinkedIn post by the manufacturer, it specifically comprises two user interfaces and two power units, each with 300 kW. This allows 600 kW to be dynamically distributed across both charging points. What’s more, based on a total installed capacity of 1.2 MW, the site can be expanded to up to 1.8 MW and is already prepared for four additional charging points.

“By setting up the fast-charging infrastructure for electric trucks, we are providing significant support to the transport and logistics industry in achieving its climate targets. At the same time, together with our partners, the LANDI cooperatives, we are helping to ensure the long-term competitiveness of sustainable transport,” says Daniel Bischof, Chairman of the Agrola Executive Board. “We are proud to be aligning entire locations with the energy and mobility transition with our innovative and networked solutions.”

Founded in 1957, Agrola AG is itself a subsidiary of the Fenaco cooperative and has its roots in agriculture. Today, it earns its money in the fuel and heating oil business, but increasingly also as a service provider in other energy sectors, such as wood pellets, solar systems, storage and site solutions, and charging stations. With over 400 locations, Agrola’s petrol station network is one of the largest in Switzerland. The company is based in Winterthur.

Last year, parent company Fenaco signed contracts with Swiss Post to establish a joint venture to build a nationwide fast-charging network. Starting this year, fast-charging points from the joint venture, called PowerUp, will be available at around 50 locations. By 2030, 300 locations with a total of 1,500 charging points are planned.

linkedin.com, agrola.ch, (both in German) linkedin.com (i-charging)

This article was first published by Cora Werwitzke for electrive’s German edition.