Innovative charging station

The key stage of providing new technologies is the testing process. According to this idea, Solaris implements an unusual investment. Soon, the manufacturer will have one of the most innovative charging stations for electrical vehicles in Europe. 

Solaris Charging Park is a new investment being built at the premises of Solaris in Bolechowo near Poznań. Featuring different charging systems and with bidirectional power flow capability. The possibility it will provide to test a variety of solutions will allow Solaris to respond precisely to the growing demand for electric buses from European operators. 

Development of zero-emission offer 

In 2021 Solaris delivered several hundred e-buses to almost 40 towns and cities across Europe. It is zero-emission vehicles that are the sales priority of the company and year by year they are accounting for an ever larger share of orders fulfilled by the producer. Investment in its own Charging Park – i.e. a single central site for charging e-buses – marks a natural step in the dynamic development of zero-emission offer. 

Innovative charging station 

The entire Charging Park will cover an area of 5000 m2. In its roofed part there will be 4 stands for vehicles, the main charger and a technical room. Photovoltaic panels will be installed on the roof of the structure to enable energy to be generated locally from renewable sources. Plug-in charging islands will be located right next to it. Altogether, it will be possible to charge up to 8 vehicles simultaneously in the Park (How long does it take to charge an electric bus? Read here). One of the chargers will also be adapted to trolleybuses’ needs.  

The Charging Park will feature charging systems made by three different suppliers. This will allow various battery charging modes to be tested and thus provide offerings tailored to different market needs. The first solution is a charger with eight charging points (with a power output ranging from 150 kW to 600 kW) that can charge three vehicles at the same time. The system is compatible with all connectors available on the market and can connect to both buses and trolleybuses. It also supports the Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) functionality, i.e. bidirectional energy flow between vehicles and the grid.  

Solaris Charging Park will be the first bidirectional charging park in Poland and one of the first innovative sites of its kind in Europe. The deployment of  V2G technology is a complete novelty, one which will make it possible to discharge buses for test purposes and to use vehicles as mobile energy storage facilities. 

The charging site will also boast a charger with four charging points with a total power output of 300 kW. It will feature two socket outlets as well as one conventional and one inverted pantograph. What is more, two independent plug-in chargers with a power output of 150 kW each and V2G capability will also be installed. A central management system will allow the operation of the Charging Park to be monitored and remotely controlled. 

In the direction of zero-emission future 

The new space will become a place where all charging and discharging processes and tests of new technologies and functionalities will take place. Moreover, the Charging Park will also serve clients by showcasing innovative solutions for them to see. The construction worki s now nearing completion, and the Park will be fully operational by mid-2022. This innovative vehicle charging station is another Solaris step on the road to a consistently implemented vision of a zero-emission future.