The members of the NEXT-E charging infrastructure project for electric vehicles and e-mobility digital specialist Hubject have joined forces to make their combined fast and ultra-fast chargers available on one EV-charging application across six bordering countries: Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia and Romania. 222 multistandard fast chargers (50 kW) and 30 ultra-fast chargers (150-350 kW) will be integrated onto Hubject’s intercharge platform, the world’s largest cross-provider charging network, further enabling long-distance travel in the region.
The NEXT-E project, co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union, is a cooperation between four energy companies - namely E.ON Group entities from the Czech Republic, Romania and Slovakia, HEP- Hrvatska elektroprivreda from Croatia, MOL Group entities from Hungary, Croatia, Czech Republic, Romania and Slovenia, Petrol Group in Slovenia and Croatia - and two car manufacturers - to deploy 222 fast and 30 ultra-fast chargers in service stations across 6 Central and Eastern European countries according to the infographic shown below.
By cooperating with Hubject, the NEXT-E project significantly extends the influence of its e-mobility network, providing a long-distance charging infrastructure with a connection to an eRoaming platform.
Currently, access to EV-chargers is possible with the application of the participating company that has deployed the charger, leading to barriers in roaming and long-distance cross boarder EV. This is going to change. The addition of 222 fast and 30 ultra-fast chargers deployed by the NEXT-E consortium members to Hubject’s intercharge platform will make it possible to comfortably drive an electric vehicle from the Czech border to the Adriatic or the Black Sea, using only one application. As such, users will be able to charge their car in all charging stations of the NEXT-E project through Hubject’s intercharge platform, thus widely expanding the mobility of e-mobility customers in all NEXT-E countries.
“The NEXT-E project will be instrumental in the transition to reaching the ambitious target of a zero-emission transport sector and a carbon-neutral economy in Europe” declared Richard Ferrer, Head of the Transport Innovation Team at the Innovation & Networks Executive Agency (INEA). “Interoperability and e-roaming are essential features of an efficient Electric Vehicle recharging network and provide for a seamless ‘electric journey along the European road network. Recharging an Electric Vehicle has to be very easy, reliable and affordable for European citizens. The availability of this service on the Hubject platform is a significant step in that direction, thanks to the pioneering spirit of public and private companies representing an entire ecosystem from energy to automotive, mobility and software industries. Electromobility is becoming a reality in Europe! The European Commission and INEA will continue to support such projects and economic operators through the various programmes to achieve the objectives of the European Green Deal”.
