EnBW opens flagship charging site with XCharge hardware
EnBW has opened a flagship charging site with twelve fast-charging points at its headquarters in Karlsruhe. The site uses new XCharge C7 chargers and will also serve as a testbed for charging technology, construction methods and amenities at future charging sites.
Image: EnBW / Photographer: Endre Dulic
The publicly accessible charging park is located at EnBW’s headquarters at the junction of Gerwigstrasse and Ostring in Karlsruhe’s Oststadt district. The initial twelve high-powered charging points can eventually be expanded to up to 20. This means EnBW has kept to the schedule it announced when construction began in June, when commissioning was planned for autumn.
One notable feature is the charging hardware used. At the Karlsruhe site, EnBW is deploying XCharge’s new-generation C7 fast charger with up to 480 kW for the first time in regular operation.
EnBW had already announced the Karlsruhe charging park in June as its first own site with charging capacity of up to 480 kW, although it did not name the manufacturer at the time. Shortly afterwards, XCharge announced that the upgraded C7 would be used at the site. Until now, the maximum charging power of the fast chargers deployed across the EnBW network had been 400 kW.
From ten test chargers to 480-kW rollout
The installation in Karlsruhe follows a longer testing phase for XCharge technology at EnBW. In August 2025, the first C7 entered real-world operation at EnBW City in Stuttgart. In December, the field test was expanded to a total of ten XCharge fast chargers at four locations in Baden-Württemberg. At the time, these generated up to 400 kW power.
At the start of 2026, EnBW and charging infrastructure manufacturer XCharge signed a long-term framework agreement. This followed the field test, which had involved more than 20,000 charging sessions. In March, however, the focus was still said to be on fast chargers with 400 kW ‘and potentially more’. In June, XCharge finally unveiled the upgraded C7 with charging power of up to 480 kW.
“With the new C7, we have introduced a product to the European market that reliably meets the demanding technical requirements of charging network operators and their customers”, said XCharge Europe chief Albina Iljasov. “The new 480 kW charging technology will primarily be deployed at locations where customers typically spend only a short time and want to add as much driving range as possible during their stop—for example, at EnBW fast charging parks along Germany’s major highways”, adds Lars Jacobs, Chief Commercial Officer and acting technical head of EnBW’s e-mobility division.
Additionally, EnBW plans to equip a ‘double-digit’ number of fast-charging parks with the 480-kW technology by the end of 2026. However, the energy company has not yet named any specific additional locations.
A reference site for construction and operation
The new XCharge hardware is only one aspect of what is intended to make the Karlsruhe site a reference charging park. EnBW also wants to test new solutions for the construction and operation of charging parks there. Its location directly next to the company’s headquarters and its charging laboratory is useful for this purpose: new charging technology can first be tested under laboratory conditions and then operated under real-world conditions at the publicly accessible charging park.
EnBW is also taking a different approach to the site’s design. According to the company, the new canopy is largely made from sustainably certified timber. When construction began in June, EnBW announced a partial canopy with a PV capacity of 16 kWp. As the company told _electrive_, this has also been implemented. The glass canopy with integrated PV modules typically associated with EnBW is therefore not being used here.
The construction site itself also served as a testbed. According to EnBW, it used electric construction machinery as well as machines powered by alternative fuels. A local solar and storage system supplied parts of the construction site with electricity. According to general contractor Leonhard Weiss, this helped save up to 50 tonnes of CO2 compared with a conventionally operated construction site.
More than just charging
The reference concept also includes the design of the charging break. The site is accessible around the clock and features an automated toilet facility as well as vending machines for drinks, coffee and snacks. There are also seating areas. A pizza vending machine is planned to be added in future.
The site is therefore not intended solely as a testbed for new charging technology. In Karlsruhe, EnBW also wants to gain experience with the design of charging sites and additional amenities. Such facilities are not entirely new for the company, however: EnBW already operates small Rewe-to-go stores at some locations, while toilet facilities are also available at other charging parks.
Further expansion
According to the company, EnBW now operates more than 9,000 of its own fast-charging points in Germany. When the XCharge framework agreement was announced at the beginning of March, the figure was still more than 8,000. And the expansion will continue. EnBW says it is systematically expanding its fast-charging network in line with demand, with the aim of providing up to 20 per cent of the fast-charging points needed in Germany by 2030.
globalnewswire.com, enbw.com (flagship charging site, in German), enbw.com (XCharge, in German)