BMVI launches tender for the “Germany network”

by

Article menu

BMVI launches tender for the

The Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) launched the tender for the so-called “Germany network” at the beginning of October. Companies can now enter the competition for the contract to set up and operate around 900 fast-charging locations throughout Germany. The Germany network is to provide the basic supply of fast charging infrastructure in medium and long-distance traffic with around 8.000 additional DC charging stations. It is intended to supplement the existing fast-charging locations and further expand the Germany-wide infrastructure.

“Charging anytime and anywhere is our goal. (…) With the Germany network, we are creating market-based competition that will lead to the development of fast-charging infrastructure exactly where we need it most – on medium and long-distance journeys throughout the country,” said Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer. He is also of the opinion that fast charging points nationwide must be accessible within ten minutes and the payment methods must be simple and uniform. This is the only way to get people excited about climate-friendly electromobility. The 900 search areas of the regional lots are spread over a total of six regions (north-west, north-east, central Germany, south-east, south-west and west) and specify a specific area, for example around a traffic junction. A quick charging location with at least four and up to 16 quick charging points should be created in each search area. The bidders must introduce or find suitable locations within these search areas. This procedure addresses regionally active operators as well as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Final awards only in the third quarter of 2022

The construction and operation of the German network will be awarded in two separate tenders. The focus of the first call for tenders that has now been launched are 900 search areas for fast charging locations in 23 regions covering the whole of Germany. In a second call for tenders, the construction and operation of around 200 fast charging stations at unmanaged rest areas on the federal motorways are to be put out to tender. According to the company, the tender for the nationwide motorway contracts will be carried out by Autobahn GmbH in the autumn. The first phase of the call for applications takes place as a so-called participation competition with an application period of six weeks. After examining and evaluating the applications to participate, the remaining bidders are asked to submit the initial offer. Then the negotiations take place. The final awards for the individual bids are expected in the third quarter of 2022.

The National Organization for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology is a program company for research funding that coordinates funding programs in the field of sustainable mobility for the Federal Ministry of Transport and the Federal Ministry for the Environment. Kurt-Christoph von Knobelsdorff, Managing Director of NOW GmbH, comments as follows: “The German network is the most important building block in our strategy for the ‘overall charging infrastructure system’. With this we are now eradicating ‘blank spots’ on the charging map across the board and in a targeted manner and are laying the foundation for the fast-charging network of the future. Because the heyday of electric mobility is just beginning. Right from the start, the Germany network ensures that our country masters this transformation in an exemplary manner.”

The move from funding to tendering is an important paradigm shift in government support for the expansion of charging infrastructure in Germany. In addition to the BMVI funding programs for public and non-public charging infrastructure, there is now an approach in which the winners of the tendering process are contractually obliged to set up and guarantee the operation of the charging points. In addition, the BMVI also defines future-proof technical minimum requirements at the locations of the German network, such as a minimum charging capacity of 200 kW that is available at all times at every charging point, quality standards and a flexible upper price limit based on the market and the electricity price, and ensures compliance with them. According to the press release, the evaluation criteria for the bids include costs, concept and customer friendliness.

Please follow and like us:
error
fb-share-icon
Tweet
fb-share-icon

4 thoughts on “BMVI launches tender for the “Germany network””

  1. It’s nice to see things moving. But it takes too much time to get there. Monthly come approx. 25-40 t new E vehicles added. That’s min. 300.000 vehicles (per year) which account for approx. 80% can be charged at home. Even with a low mileage of assumed 10.000 km per year should still be more than 2.100.000 additional charging stops at public fast charging stations. Probably concentrated, mainly in the holiday season. That’s surely going to be funny. It is better to be prepared to wait in the next 1-2 years.

    Reply

  2. As we have learned, all previous operators already hate it. I’m curious how it will be handled. The core issue is how legally secure the content of this tender is. Everything is said to have been checked beforehand, but the ministry is still managed by Mr. Scheuer. Too much leap of faith is out of place here. Anyway, I didn’t understand why the big players weren’t brought on board in advance.

    Reply

  3. It is very much to be hoped that the project will soon be put under the responsibility of a new transport minister, who will hopefully bring a little expertise with him! In this regard, Mr. Scheuer was a total failure in every respect and a guarantor for an expensive failure at the expense of the taxpayer!

    Reply

  4. The calls for tender are correct and important, but they come much too late.
    I was recently on the holiday island of Fehmarn and had to search for 30 minutes to find a free charging station. Despite the EnBW App (ADAC) or NewMotion (Shell), the occupancy of the charging stations was not displayed correctly.
    I alone lack the belief that this transport minister will get something sensible done.
    Well, hopefully next year we will have a new transport minister.

    Reply

Leave a Comment