The operator of electrical terminals Atlante, the reference network of the manufacturer Stellantis, has opened its first stations in France and intends to speed up the pace, its general director said on Tuesday. Atlante inaugurated its fourth charging station on Tuesday in a commercial area near Châlons-en-Champagne (Marne), with 8 fast charging points.
Another hundred fast and ultra-fast stations should follow in France in the next 18 months, according to Atlante, on the Vinci motorways in the south of France, for example. Atlante is the result of a partnership between Stellantis, number two in the European automotive market, and the Italian company NHOA (formerly Engie EPS), number three worldwide in energy storage and a subsidiary of the Taiwanese TCC group.
35,000 terminals in southern Europe by 2030
Stellantis thus reinforces the network available for charging electric cars and will soon offer preferential rates to customers of its brands, such as Peugeot, Fiat, Opel and Alfa Romeo. Atlante currently offers recharges at 0.58 euros per kilowatt hour, in the low average of the market. Founded in 2021, the operator wants to be very ambitious in the long term, while its competitors Tesla, Ionity (which brings together BMW, Ford, Hyundai, Mercedes and Volkswagen), Fastned or TotalEnergies have already divided up northern Europe.
Atlante thus aspires to build the first charging network in southern Europe, with 3,000 terminals by the end of 2023 and 35,000 terminals by 2030. It already has charging stations in Italy (34 open), in Spain, Portugal and France, which should eventually constitute its largest market. Atlante will install most of the terminals in “transit places”, such as national highways, highways (four stations planned in the Vinci network) but also in commercial area car parks, such as in Châlons, indicated its general director for France, Jaques Galvani.
As a subsidiary of NHOA, Atlante plans to equip its stations with electric energy storage capacity. Added to the photovoltaic panels, these resources will be necessary to “manage the increase in power of the electric vehicle”, according to Galvani, with usage peaks in particular on weekends or during vacation trips.
Source: BFM TV
