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Amazon open-sources tool to boost EV charging for HGVs
14 September 2023
by Christopher Carey
Amazon has published a new open-source tool to help European local authorities, governments, private industry, and electricity network operators determine where electric charging points for heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) should be built.
Charging Location for Electric Trucks (CHALET) allows transportation and logistics operators to input specific locations and routes for their delivery network, along with specific factors such as vehicle battery, range, and transit time.
Developed over the past 18 months, the tool then takes all factors into consideration and generates a list of optimum charger locations, ranked by priority.
“Middle mile electrification in Europe will not scale until efficient and convenient charging infrastructure is put in place,” said Andreas Marschner, Vice president, Amazon Transportation Services.
“Our teams have built an effective, science-based tool, and we’re open-sourcing the code to help all companies, big and small, make more strategic electrification decisions.”
UK infrastructure
While countries like Norway and the Netherlands have invested heavily in developing comprehensive national EV charging networks that incorporate HGVs, the UK lags far behind.
According to automotive lobby group the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), the UK does not have a single public electric charging station dedicated to HGVs.
The group said the UK government must urgently set out a strategy to help the sector to decarbonise or risk missing its target to make all new HGVs zero-emission by 2040.
This was echoed by trade association Logistics UK.
“CHALET has the potential to enable the right planning and energy decisions by government, and the investment needed to deliver zero-carbon logistics at pace and in the most cost-effective way for logistics customers and the economy,” said David Wells, Chief Executive, Logistics UK.
“Evidence from this tool should also inform important decisions regarding driver welfare facilities and rest stops.”
Image: Amazon
