More than 1,150 charging points have been installed from northern to southern Italy. For 2024, a greater offer in terms of solutions, the introduction of new technologies, an increase in the capillarization of the network in the most strategic areas and an increase in the power of the new infrastructure is planned.
Milano, 19 March 2024 – Accelerating the transition to electric mobility by developing nationwide ultra-fast and affordable High Power Charging (HPC) infrastructure. It is by constantly pursuing this goal that Ewiva, a joint venture of Enel X and Volkswagen Group, continues its growth path to reach 3,000 charging points at more than 750 sites throughout Italy.
Ewiva’s 2024: goals and strategy
Since the inauguration of the first “Premium” site at Via Flaminia 871 in Rome in December 2022 at its official launch, Ewiva has contributed to the energy transition of our country and intends to continue with the widespread extension of the high-power network, focusing on the most strategic areas, with high demand for mobility and located near services and points of interest for e-drivers. The efforts of the Charging Point Operator (CPO) will also be directed to the careful analysis of the electric mobility market trend, with the aim of modulating its activities to promptly accommodate its needs, under the banner of total flexibility.
To ensure maximum versatility for both the partners who will host the stations and the e-drivers who will use them, Ewiva will engage on:
- expansion of the variety of solutions offered, with the installation of some “hybrid” charging stations, i.e., equipped with columns capable of delivering power even at powers up to 400 kW, always ensuring ultra-fast charging;
- realization of multi-column sites, equipped with innovative systems capable of simplifying the action of charging;
- introduction of new technologies, including innovative columns with storage systems to ensure high-power charging even where it would not be technically possible;
- increased use of shelters equipped with photovoltaic panels to make the charging experience more comfortable by contributing to renewable energy production;
- adoption of increasingly advanced infrastructure usage data monitoring and analysis systems to improve network performance and to develop Ewiva’s presence in the territory in line with the mobility needs of e-drivers;
- extension of the number of Mobility Service Providers enabled to the Ewiva network (to date already about 70).
Ewiva’s achievements to 2023
With more than 330 sites, for a total of more than 1,150 recharging points installed, Ewiva is now present in all Italian regions and is one of the leading players in the country’s electric mobility scene. Since the company’s launch, more than 550,000 recharges have been made, enabling all e-drivers to travel more than 100 million kilometers, a distance equal to about 2,500 times the circumference of the Earth.
These are important numbers that reflect a concrete benefit to the environment. In fact, through December 2023, recharges made at Ewiva’s columns have avoided the emission of:
- more than 12,000 tons of CO2, which is equivalent to the planting of 650,000 trees;
- 800 kg of particulate matter;
- nearly 30 tons of nitrogen oxides.
A benefit in terms of noise pollution as well: an amount of noise equal to that produced by more than 20,000 cars with endothermic engines was avoided.
Freedom to travel electric: the innovations introduced by Ewiva
Over the past year, Ewiva has initiated a series of projects that lead the way for the evolution of the electric charging network in Italy. These include the introduction on all its charging stations of Plug&Charge, the feature that allows the charging station to communicate directly with the passenger car and immediately start charging, without the need to authenticate through apps or cards. 2023 was also the year of the partnership with &Charge, the platform that-thanks to the involvement of e-drivers-enables Ewiva to collect feedback on the charging experience and improve the quality of the service offered, which already guarantees a 99 percent reliability level across the entire network.
In addition, the CPO has implemented the ability to pay for refills directly at the charging station in contactless mode with the electronic payment instruments routinely used by customers. This important innovation, which to date affects more than 70 sites throughout Italy, about 300 recharging points, and will be further extended in 2024, makes it possible to meet the needs of the many occasional customers and those who are oriented toward pay-as-you-go recharging or all those who do not already have a subscription with a mobility service provider (MSP).
In 2023, Ewiva also completed the installation and activation of the High Power Charging sites, with a capacity of 150kW each and located along the Ten-T (Trans-European Transport Network), envisaged by the European Miliar-E project, in line with the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR).
Says Federico Caleno, CEO of Ewiva: “The milestones we have achieved represent a starting point that pushes us to commit further to an increasingly sustainable and affordable mobility. We want to continue to be enablers of electric mobility in Italy, and the many collaborations we have already started with Local Administrations and private partners (e.g., from the large-scale retail sector, Ho.Re.Ca or retail more generally) from North to South, stimulate us to move forward.”
“Not only that. – continues Caleno – For the new year, we foresee an increase in the power of the infrastructure park, with the aim of enabling charging also to new models of electric cars capable of accepting higher and higher levels of charging power and consistent with the requirements of the European funding obtained. Innovative solutions, versatility and ubiquity are the indispensable factors we focus on, to make users increasingly satisfied with having chosen electric.”