Ionity opens 200th German charging station in Karlsruhe
Ionity has opened its 200th fast-charging station in Germany in Karlsruhe. Twelve of these charging points offer speeds between 400 and 600 kW, bringing Germany’s network for this fast-charging joint venture to over 1,500 HPC charging stations. Across Europe, there are now 6,475 such charging points.
Image: Ionity
The new charging park is located at Zimmerstraße 24 in Karlsruhe. It is easily accessible via the A5 highway. The nearby Karlsruhe interchange also provides access to the A8 highway heading toward Stuttgart. According to Ionity, restaurants and other amenities are located in close proximity.
Of the twelve charging points, two per charger station, eight are equipped with Alpitronic’s HYC1000 megawatt charging system. Under suitable conditions, these allow charging speeds of up to 600 kW per electric vehicle via the CCS connector. In addition, there are two Alpitronic HYC400 hyperchargers with a charging capacity of up to 400 kW, each accompanied by two charging points.
1,000 kW from a single central unit
In previous hyperchargers, the power modules are still located inside the charging station’s housing. In the HYC1000, they are instead moved to a central power cabinet that dynamically distributes its total capacity of one megawatt across four charging columns. The system can be connected using either MCS or CCS connectors. Since the location is intended for electric vehicles, only CCS connectors have been installed. This allows up to 600 kW at a single charging point in theory, while only an MCS connector can draw the full megawatt. When multiple electric vehicles are connected, the available power is distributed accordingly.
Ionity’s current offering of charging speeds above the long-established 350 kW aligns with the strategy described by Meta Kessler in an interview with electrive in April. “We always want to offer the fastest and most advanced technology,” said the then Director of Strategy & Transformation, who now holds the position of Director of Commercial & Partnerships since July. Ionity plans to install HYC1000 systems primarily in areas with high usage, namely on high-traffic routes. The HYC1000 is intended to complement existing systems rather than replace them entirely.
Second German location equipped with megawatt-level technology
Alpitronic introduced its megawatt solution in mid-February 2025. Just two months later, it was announced that Ionity would be the first charging station operator to adopt Alpitronic’s megawatt charging system. However, the first systems were not put into operation until February of this year at the French locations of Maison-Dieu and Sorgues, which together have twelve charging points. Shortly after, the first German charging park equipped with this new technology opened in Werne, North Rhine-Westphalia, featuring eight 600-kW charging points. Karlsruhe thus became the second German Ionity location to use the megawatt charging system.
The Italian charger manufacturer has only been part of Ionity’s hardware suppliers since 2023. The first charging station equipped with Alpitronic’s Hyperchargers opened in December 2023 in Merklingen near Ulm. Previously, Ionity relied primarily on Tritium and ABB for charging hardware, with Porsche Engineering used in some cases as well. That same year, it was announced that the joint venture had also chosen Ekoenergetyka as an additional supplier.
From Aabenraa to 892 locations
The history of this charging network dates back to 2017. In November, the name Ionity was announced for the fast-charging joint venture founded by BMW, Daimler, Ford, and the Volkswagen Group along with Audi and Porsche. Just a month later, construction of the first charging park began in Aabenraa, Denmark. In April 2018, Ionity opened its first location in Germany at the Brohltal Ost service area on the A61 highway, initially featuring six 350-kW charging stations from Tritium. Today, Ionity operates 200 locations in Germany.
What about Europe? By early 2022, the company had 400 charging stations across Europe, and by February 2024, it reached 600 locations in 24 countries. As of now, the Ionity website lists 892 operational sites with 6,475 HPC charging points across Europe, with another 74 charging parks under construction. By 2030, Ionity aims to expand its European network to around 1,300 locations in total. It remains unclear how many of these charging parks will be located in Germany.