World premiere at the Exhibition Centre: Audi charging hub launched as municipal fast charging concept

A genuine project of the future was created in the Nuremberg Exhibition Centre in record time. Following a construction period of just five weeks, Audi and NürnbergMesse together opened the world’s first “Audi charging hub.” In a space of about 400 square meters, the fast charging station features modern architecture and provides a total of six charging points for electric vehicles and, on an upper storey, an exclusive lounge for working or relaxing. The reservable charging points on Münchener Strasse are intended, for example, for eCar owners who don’t have access to charging equipment at home. Nuremberg’s mayor Marcus König welcomes this latest innovation on the exhibition grounds. “We’re proud to have this unique pilot project operating at the Exhibition Centre in Nuremberg. Not only is the fast charging station located on one of the city’s most important access and arterial roads and in a major commercial zone, but the charging points also make a meaningful contribution to expanding the electromobility infrastructure in Nuremberg. It’s vital that we encourage more people to make the transition to more eco-friendly drive systems.” The Audi charging hub is an open charging site. Drivers with other vehicle makes can also charge there and use parts of the lounge, restaurant, and sanitary facilities.

Dr Roland Fleck, CEO of the NürnbergMesse Group, states: “The Audi charging hub is an impressive example of how innovations and attractive services are introduced all around our Exhibition Centre. We’re happy that Audi chose our location for this world premiere.” His fellow CEO Peter Ottmann adds: “For our exhibitors and visitors, the additional fast charging stations add real value to their participation in exhibitions and congresses in Nuremberg. At the same time, we’re boosting the sustainability of our exhibition venue!”

There is currently a total of 37 charging points belonging to the exhibition grounds and six external charging stations in operation. Another 12 charging points will be added to the grounds by the end of the first quarter of 2022, which will increase NürnbergMesse’s total number of fixed charging points on the exhibition grounds to 49.

At this pilot location, Audi is applying its new charging concept for the first time in actual practice. “We want to test a flexible, premium-quality fast charging infrastructure in an urban environment,” says Ralph Hollmig, project manager for the Audi charging hub. “We’re addressing customers who don’t necessarily wake up mornings to a fully charged eCar, while at the same time thinking about the growth of charging requirements in the future.”

Thanks to an intermediate storage unit with about a 2.45 MWh capacity, the charging points in Nuremberg require only a 200 kW green electricity connection to the already available low-voltage grid, which is entirely adequate for operations. A 200 kW output is enough to continually fill the storage modules. Photovoltaic modules on the roof also supply up to 30 kW of green energy. Customers can charge electric cars at the six charging points with an up to 320 kW output.

The Audi charging hub is based on flexible container cubes that can be assembled and disassembled in just a few days. The cubes provide two fast charging points per unit and can be combined in a variety of configurations. Used and reconditioned lithium-ion batteries from disassembled development vehicles – called “second life batteries” – serve as electric storage systems, resulting in cost and resource savings. This means that there’s no longer a need for a complex infrastructure with a high-voltage supply cable and expensive transformers, or for time-consuming planning processes. With its battery storage solution, the Audi charging hub brings fast charging infrastructure to places where the power grid would be insufficient.

Get more impressions of the Audi charging hub in our online magazine