Endesa to install more than 100,000 EV charging points in Spain, as Madrid announces ban on polluting vehicles

Endesa, which generates, distributes and sells electricity in Spain, has announced a plan to install more than 108,000 public and private charging points for electric vehicles in Spain, to be carried out via the new line of business offering added-value services and innovative technological solutions in the energy field.

Endesa X, with 8,500 public charging points being rolled out in 2019-2023, at an investment of EUR 65 million (USD73 million), in addition to a further 100,000 private points, is launching by far the most ambitious plan towards driving electric mobility to be put in place across the whole of Spain.

Meanwhile, the Spanish capital Madrid has announced that polluting vehicles, including gasoline vehicles manufactured before 2000 and diesel vehicles manufactured before 2006, will be banned from the city center by 2020. The Madrid City Council estimates that the project, which was launched last Friday and labeled Madrid Central, will affect about 20% of the cars that enter the city centre.

“Electric mobility is a strategic pillar for Endesa, given that it plays a fundamental role in moving towards a completely carbon-free energy system by 2050. Indeed, this aim is shared by all countries that signed the Paris COP 21 agreement, as well as a high number of different social and economic agents, on both a national and international scale,” said José Boags, Endesa’s managing director.

Once car manufacturers have managed to substantially increase battery life and the price of electric vehicles becomes competitive relative to fuel-powered cars, we must overcome one more, final obstacle in order to facilitate the real-world transition to electric mobility, he said. In other words, we must offer a large network of charging points, to guarantee that drivers can move around the entire country with ease, he added. The aim of this ambitious Endesa X plan is to address this problem through the mass roll-out of charging points.

The Endesa X Charging Facilities Plan will be implemented in two stages. In the initial years of the plan (2019-2020), Endesa X will establish a network of 2,000 charging points, which will connect the main cities (with more than 35,000 inhabitants) and routes, covering 15,000 kilometres’ worth of main roads and urban areas and in turn, guaranteeing that 75% of the Spanish population can access public charging facilities within their area. This will mean that drivers will always have a charging point within 100 kilometres of their location, no matter where they are.

In the second phase of the plan (2021-2023), Endesa will install more than 6,500 new public access charging points in shopping centres, car parks, hotel chains, service areas and on public roads, etc., in order to keep up with growth in the electric vehicle market, while providing better distribution of facilities in urban areas and the main strategic communication points, even on the islands.

Meanwhile, Endesa X will drive the development of charging points in private residential and company car parks, aiming to create 100,000 charging points within the lifetime of the plan.

This process will go hand in hand with the introduction of new electric vehicle models, the majority of which, considering the advancements of manufacturers, will have 400 kilometres’ worth of battery life on a single charge.

The electricity supplied to more than 8,500 public access charging points will be 100% certified renewable energy, thereby guaranteeing that the energy comes from clean sources.

The Endesa X plan aims to meet its clients’ varying needs by installing different technologies that make it possible to charge the vehicle’s battery at different speeds, in a variety of very different settings. The plan includes domestic charging at 3.7 kW (slow), 22 kW high-speed charging points, 50 kW high-speed charging points, and ultra-fast charging points operating above 150 kW.

All the facilities provided under the plan will be connected to the Enel X global digital platform, which will facilitate interoperability and remote control of the charging points. Endesa X aims to offer a flawless charging experience via the X-Recharge mobile app, which will grant its users complete access to information on the charging facility’s status, in addition to enabling them to manage their charging sessions.