E.ON opens new test and innovation center for electromobility

E.ON opened a new, state-of-the-art test and innovation center for charging technologies and sustainable energy solutions. At the new site in Essen, Germany, E.ON is testing and researching charging solutions for electric vehicles and their intelligent integration into the energy ecosystem.

On an area of around 10,000 square meters, more than 25 stations and digital test environments are available for testing vehicles, charging stations, wallboxes and accessories. The test lab also has five special climate chambers. These allow E.ON engineers to simulate all temperature conditions that occur around the world, from freezing cold to extreme heat.

For example, the charging behavior of electric cars can be tested at temperatures between minus 40 and plus 50 degrees Celsius. This means that customers such as car manufacturers do not have to carry out time-consuming and costly tests in real environments.

In addition to research and development, E.ON also uses the test center to train its customers and partners in installation and maintenance. 

E.ON Board Member Patrick Lammers said at the opening: “Energy transition, clean transport, climate protection – all this will only succeed if electromobility gains even more momentum. We will build at least 1,000 additional public charging stations across Europe every year, further accelerating the transformation of traffic and transport. With our new test and innovation center, we are creating the necessary capacity to meet the growing demand for charging infrastructure. As a result, we are ideally positioned for the dynamic market development of electric mobility. I am very proud of our team who have created a unique and practical test environment that is also available to our partners. This brings us a big step closer to electromobility for everyone.”

Global sales of electric cars hit a new record last year. The International Energy Agency predicts that the number of electric cars could increase tenfold by 2030. Car manufacturers and providers of charging infrastructure are working flat out to develop new products and bring them to market. With the increasing number and variety of vehicle models and charging solutions, interoperability between different systems is becoming an ever-greater challenge. The industry also has to cope with the increasing complexity of charging solutions, ranging from fast charging for electric cars and trucks to bi-directional charging, e.g. for vehicle-to-home applications.  

E.ON is pursuing a Europe-wide growth strategy with its electromobility business and continues to focus on expanding its fast-charging infrastructure. The company plans to build at least 1,000 new ultra-fast charging stations per year in its European markets. In Germany, E.ON will build around 140 new charging locations with more than 1,200 charging points for the federally subsidized German network (“Deutschlandnetz”), making it one of the largest operators of the nationwide fast-charging network. This is in addition to the charging infrastructure E.ON is building for its customers across Europe. In 2022 alone, E.ON sold more than 20,000 charging points to private and business customers in Europe.