Voltix opens France’s most powerful truck charging station
In Vierzon, Voltix has opened its first public fast-charging station for electric HGVs. The facility initially offers four charging points, each with up to 1.5 MW - with this later set to expand to eight charging points.
The Voltix station in Vierzon initially offers four charging points with up to 1.5 MW each.
Image: Voltix
Voltix, a subsidiary of Vinci Concessions, has opened the first site of its French charging network for heavy-duty electric trucks in Vierzon, in the Cher department. According to the company, with up to 1.5 MW of charging power per charging point, this is currently France’s highest-power truck charging station.
Initially, four charging points are available, with plans to eventually expand to eight in the long term. Each charging point is equipped with both CCS and MCS connectors. According to Voltix, heavy-duty electric trucks can recharge enough energy there in about 30 to 45 minutes to continue their journey – aligning with mandatory driving breaks every 4.5 hours of driving.
The site is strategically located at a key transport hub. Vierzon is situated at the intersection of the A20 motorway between Paris and Toulouse and the A71 towards Clermont-Ferrand. Additionally, the nearby A85 provides connections towards Tours and the Atlantic coast.
Voltix planning 50 sites by 2028
Vierzon is the first site of a larger expansion programme. In September, Vinci Concessions, Épopée Gestion, and ADEME Investissement announced plans to invest nearly €90 million in a fast-charging network for e-trucks. In the first phase, around 20 sites are planned, primarily in France. Later, Voltix intends to expand into Germany and Spain, with a target of 50 sites by 2028.
At the opening in Vierzon, Renault Trucks, Volvo Trucks, Daimler Truck, Scania, and MAN showcased current heavy-duty electric trucks with MCS capability. Voltix notes that registrations of heavy-duty electric trucks in France have multiplied since 2021.
In Germany, Voltix is already involved in building public charging infrastructure for heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Together with Eliso, the company, as a bidding consortium, was awarded the contract for 25 sites of the state-initiated truck fast-charging network at unmanaged motorway rest areas (link in German).
The Vierzon site is also part of the DRIVE-FR project and is co-financed through the European CEF-AFIF funding line, which supports the development of charging infrastructure for heavy-duty commercial vehicles along the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T).
Voltix positions the station within the decarbonisation of French road freight transport. According to the company, 89 per cent of domestic land freight transport is by road, while road freight transport accounts for 7.4 per cent of national greenhouse gas emissions.
“An electric truck without charging infrastructure is just a promise,” said Nicolas Notebaert, Director General of Concessions at Vinci. “With Vierzon, the company wants to demonstrate that the necessary infrastructure for long-distance electric transport is already being built.”