It has a female name but, in truth, it is an acronym for Electric Vehicles Arteries. We are talking about Eva+, the electric mobility project in Italy and Austria for which the financing agreement has already been signed, for a maximum value of €4,2 million with INEA (agency appointed by the European Commission), and which will be launched officially in Brussels in January 2017.
Enel collaborates in the project, as coordinator, and Verbund (the main Austrian utility) together with some of the main manufacturers of electric vehicles worldwide such as Renault, Nissan, BMW and Volkswagen Group Italia (represented by the Volkswagen and Audi brands), with the aim of building a fast charging infrastructure for electric vehicles along the main roads and highways in Italy and Austria. With a view to implementing the EVA+ project in Italy, Enel is entering into agreements with the motorway concessionaires with the aim of enhancing the technological and commercial innovation component of the project.
Over the three-year project (2017-19) 200 "multi-standard" fast charging stations will be installed offering all fast charging standards (CSS Combo 2, CHAdeMO or AC charging) in a single station . Of the 200 columns envisaged by the project, 180 of the Fast Recharge Plus type (technology entirely developed by Enel which allows two electric vehicles to be charged simultaneously in 20 minutes, for a total of 360 electric cars charged simultaneously) will be installed in Italy by Enel and 20 in Austria by Smatrics, a subsidiary of Verbund.
In addition, innovative technological solutions will be tested and customer needs will be analyzed to identify the best points in which to install charging stations. EVA+, by connecting large urban centers and ensuring fast charging of electric vehicles according to international technical standards, will guarantee the interoperability of the charging service in European countries, thus allowing electric vehicle owners to make long-distance journeys in a sustainable manner both in Italy and Austria.
Thanks to the close collaboration envisaged in the project between players in the electric sector and car manufacturers, both strongly interested in the development of electric mobility at an Italian and transnational level, the EVA+ project is of strategic importance for the future of sustainable mobility throughout the territory Italian, allowing electric mobility to get out of the urban domain in which it remained confined in these early years.
The project will be co-financed, up to a maximum of 50% of the total value, by the European Commission through the CEF instrument (Connecting Europe Facility). EVA+ will make a concrete contribution to the implementation of the European Commission's TEN-T - Trans-European Transport Network programme, created to support the construction and modernization of the transport infrastructure allowing the integration of the two Member countries within a fast charging network under construction across the EU.
