Nissan accelerates installation of quick chargers

Prices of Quick Chargers (QCs) for electric vehicle are set to tumble, accelerating their installation across Europe, as a result of an agreement between Nissan and a group of QC suppliers.

Nissan has teamed up with QC manufacturers Circutor, DBT, Efacec, Endesa and Siemens to speed the development of cheaper, smaller, QCs for electric vehicle batteries, and accelerate the installation of publicly-available QC points across Europe. It’s made possible by a combination of the game-changing technology in Nissan’s recently-unveiled DC quick charger and the regional strength of Nissan’s partners.

The result is expected to be a dramatic reduction in the price of QCs by over half to under €10,000, paving the way for businesses such as service stations, car park operators and retail outlets to install quick chargers and run them profitably as a commercial enterprise. In effect it will mean that Nissan LEAF drivers and other quick charge enabled vehicles will be able to recharge the car's battery to 80% capacity in less than half an hour.

It is expected that there will now be thousands of QCs across Europe by the end of 2012, and tens of thousands by 2015. This infrastructure development will be welcomed by all manufacturers with plug-in vehicles either on the road now or in their product planning cycles. It can’t come too soon for Nissan: the company’s COO, Toshiyuki Shiga, recently admitted that a wider distribution of QCs in Europe is essential for the mass adoption of electric vehicles. It’s likely that he was reflecting the company’s reaction to the slow uptake of the Leaf in Europe.