"We need the mobility of the road, we need trucks", Minister President Markus Söder
On Thursday, 21 March 2024, was the first megawatt charging of a MAN eTruck on the MAN premises in Munich-Karlsfeld. The charging was carried out by Bavarian Prime Minister-Markus Söder, who praised MAN as a strong technology partner in his subsequent speech ("High-tech eTrucks at a reasonable price"). At the same time, he made an urgent appeal to mobility in Germany: "Mobility provided by Deutsche Bahn alone will not be enough in the future. We need road mobility, we need trucks." Söder pointed out that climate targets cannot be achieved by penalising the economy, but instead must be realised hand in hand with the economy. "We will not improve the balance of CO₂ emissions by reducing economic output." According to Söder, CO₂ neutrality can only be achieved through technology and innovation, not by restrictions and bans.
"Reducing CO₂ emissions is also possible with combustion engines", Minister-President Markus Söder
"Germany is internationally known as an automotive country for cars and trucks, such as those from MAN, and we want this to remain this in future." In this context, the question arose as to what truck mobility will be in the future. "We want technological diversity in Europe, such as the use of hydrogen. At the same time, the use of combustion engines should be extended because the goal of reducing CO₂ emissions can also be achieved with combustion engines," Söder stated. In particular, he praised the development of e-mobility. Germany has made considerable progress in this area in recent years and MAN has also made great strides forward.
Expansion of e-mobility network: 30,000 MCS charging points in Europe, including 4,000 in Germany
Michael Halbherr, CEO of ABB E-Mobility, was also enthusiastic: "With the first prototype of the megawatt charging system (MCS), we have doubled the power and charging capacity within just a few years and thus made a significant contribution to the energy transition." Alexander Vlaskamp, CEO of MAN Truck & Bus, on the other hand, called for a faster expansion of the charging infrastructure: "What we need now are clear signals from politicians to drive forward the expansion of the e-mobility network. Our goal by 2030 is 30,000 MCS charging points in Europe, about 4,000 of them in Germany."
Info: Current charging points with the CCS standard (Combined Charging System) offer a maximum charging capacity of 400 kW at 500 A. The charging capacities of the new ABB Megawatt Charging System (MCS) are designed for up to 3.75 MW and 3,000 amperes (A) of current. The international standardisation process for the megawatt charging system is due to be completed this year. At the same time, network expansion and its digitalisation are essential for the charging infrastructure in Europe.
