The electrification of Northgate: a paradigm shift for electric mobility

The charging infrastructure project, implemented at the 27 Spanish offices of the hire company, features metering and energy efficiency solutions.

Challenge

Northgate, a leading British flexible hire company in Spain, has made a commitment to electrify 225 parking spaces in all its offices in Spain - 27 in total - so that it can offer a global hire service (vehicle and charger) for its employees and fleet of customers.

This ambitious plan involves the deployment of a significant number of semi-fast charging devices of up to 22kW, which will be financed through the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism and the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, as part of the Moves Flotas programme of the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDEA).

In addition, at the Northgate headquarters in Getafe (Madrid), there is a hub with 50-kW DC chargers open to the public, which can be used via the Iberdrola Smart Mobility app.

Circutor has tasked itself with proposing to the company the most suitable charging solutions for each of its sites, which have indoor and outdoor parking. Through this collaboration, we aim to guide Northgate in its great challenge of leading electromobility in the field of commercial vehicle hire.

Solution

The solution supplied has 120 Urban T22 AC chargers balanced between 2 charging outlets (double), which can be installed both on the wall and freestanding, and which have a 10-year guarantee against corrosion. These devices house a 4-m coil hose for slow and semi-fast charging of employee and fleet vehicles.

In addition, the 50-kW Raption model has also been installed for fast charging of fleet vehicles and visitor vehicles at Northgate's headquarters in Getafe.

The installation also features our DLM power management system, which allows charging at the maximum power available at each of the sites using the existing power surplus while avoiding tripping the breaker and being penalized for consuming in excess of the contracted power.

Benefits

The project implemented, in collaboration with Northgate, installed in just one year, consolidates it as a leading company in the hire sector and in the transition to electric vehicles.

In coming years, urban freight distribution vehicles will be required to shift to electric through municipal positive discrimination policies, in keeping with the Plans to Promote Electricity Mobility. With this massive implementation, Northgate will make it easier for its personnel and customers to be amongst the first users of electric vehicles to enjoy these charging solutions.

We are convinced that this case will encourage Northgate competitors to develop similar projects in coming months and, even more importantly, to change their mindset and shift toward a paradigm of electric mobility.