Port of Turku’s new charging station is one of Finland’s most powerful
With the installation of the Plugit Pro DC charging station, even the largest electric truck on the market can now drive to Turku, deliver its cargo into the port, charge the vehicle and drive back to where it came from.
The lack of public charging stations has been considered one of the bottlenecks in the electrification of heavy wheel traffic, but this issue is now history as far as Turku is concerned.
Since the end of last year, a Plugit Pro DC charging station has been operational in the port of Turku. One of the first users has been Jani Tenhunen, professional driver for ferry and logistics company DFDS, who parks his Volvo FH Aero Electric next to the charger every weekday.
“The charging station has made my work easier. I transport trailers from Vantaa to the port of Turku, and previously, I had to drive all the way to Naantali to charge the truck”, Tenhunen states.
That meant about half an hour of extra driving. The station also pleases Mikko Viholainen, General Manager at DFDS.
“The Port of Turku’s charging station is at an ideal location for us: it is easy to approach since all port traffic goes by it. The station also has room for heavy equipment: you don’t need to drop off the trailer to charge as is the case with several other city locations”, Viholainen says.
Finland’s first Mega Satellite
The station, operated by Plugit Finland Oy, contains new technology. The vehicles are charged by Kempower’s Mega Satellite, the first of its kind in Finland. It delivers up to 560 kW/charging spot.
This makes charging the large batteries of electric trucks faster.
“The charger delivers so much power that the vehicle can’t receive all of it. This model limits the charge to 235 kW. It continues to deliver the same power even if other vehicles are charged at the same time”, Tenhunen says.
This is no coincidence since Plugit wanted to build a charging station to suit heavy traffic.
“It is important for commercial transport that everything works. In Turku, the chargers are not driven at full throttle, so to speak”, explains Timo Kenttälä, Sales Manager at Kempower.
Upgradeability to megawatt class
This year, new electric trucks are expected on the market that can be charged with up to 1,000 kW using the Megawatt Charging System (MCS). The head of the MCS connector attached to the vehicle is bigger than the CCS plug currently in use. In addition, new charging devices are needed. Those are currently being installed in Europe.
The beauty of the Turku charging station is that it can be upgraded to the megawatt class when new electric trucks enter the roads.
“This can be done by changing the satellite unit or adding a charger. It’s not a big job since the station has good foundations”, Kenttälä states.
With the installation of the heavy traffic charging station, Turku has jumped ahead of Helsinki, where drivers still want better infrastructure.
“The Port of Turku has been a pioneer in this, and we are happy with the good support they have provided. You can now come to Turku with an electric truck, deliver the cargo to port and drive back to where you came from fully charged”, says Tuomas Mäkelä, Plugit’s Head of Business Unit, Professional Traffic.
This is exactly what will be done by Tenhunen, whose 660-horsepower electric truck is charged before the interview is even over.
Text & photos: Sari Järvinen
Port of Turku’s heavy traffic charging station
- Four 35-metre drive-through charging stations
- Kempower’s CCS Mega Satellites
- Maximum charging power 560 kW/station, minimum 400 kW
- The station is operated by Plugit Finland Oy.
- Located in the truck park at the Suikkilantie and Pansiontie crossing.
