Megawatt-scale eHGV charging hub opens as part of eFREIGHT 2030

The first megawatt-scale charging site for electric heavy goods vehicles has opened at East Midlands Gateway to support Kuehne+Nagel’s UK road operations.  

This marks a major milestone for the eFREIGHT 2030 consortium, which is led by Voltempo.

The new charging hub at East Midlands Gateway is powered by Voltempo’s HyperCharger system, which is capable of delivering charge rates up to one megawatt - enough to charge future eHGVs in less than 30 minutes. 

It is the first of Voltempo’s Megawatt-scale HyperChargers to be deployed under the planned national rollout of 35 depot charging hubs through eFREIGHT 2030, part of UK government’s Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator (ZEHID) Programme.

The Kuehne+Nagel site features six DC charging bays powered by Voltempo’s HyperCharger infrastructure. At the heart of the system is a single megawatt-scale HyperCharger pod, which intelligently distributes power across a network of chargepoints with one positioned at each bay, enabling flexible, high-power charging to support future freight operations. 

“This first deployment of Voltempo’s HyperCharger at Kuehne+Nagel’s depot is a significant milestone for zero emission freight,” said Simon Smith, CEO, Voltempo. “As lead partner and charging infrastructure provider for eFREIGHT 2030, our focus has been on delivering infrastructure that works for real-world freight operations today, while being ready for the next generation of high-power electric and autonomous HGVs tomorrow.” 

The facility was formally opened on 15 January with Chris McDonald, Minister for Industry in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) in attendance.

The East Midlands Gateway charging infrastructure will support Kuehne+Nagel’s continued investment in decarbonising its fleet, initially serving an electric fleet of twelve eHGVs which are part of the ZEHID project, including both DAF XF Electric and Renault Trucks E-Tech Ts as part of eFREIGHT 2030 operating across regional, national and international routes. Each truck is providing valuable real-world performance and efficiency data, including analysis of energy use, range, charging cycles and total cost of operation. 

Kate Broome, Sustainability and Social Impact Director at Kuehne+Nagel, said: “As part of eFREIGHT 2030, we’re proud to be working with partners like Voltempo and their innovative technology, alongside vehicle manufacturers DAF and Renault Trucks, to open the first charging hub at our site - a real milestone made possible through collaboration across industry. Located at the heart of our UK road logistics operations, the combination of the HyperCharger and our new electric fleet enables us to deliver more sustainable logistics for our customers at real operational scale.”