Hitachi Energy has deployed a centralized, multi-vehicle electric bus charging solution for RTC, the public transit agency in the greater Quebec City area.
The three-year project represents an step toward the electrification of the RTC’s entire bus fleet and infrastructure. The pilot is also providing data on strategies for charging large numbers of vehicles.
The technology selected for the pilot is Hitachi Energy’s Grid-eMotion Fleet solution, an integrated charging system that can deliver multi-megawatt level charging capabilities tailored to urban bus fleets. The system requires 60 percent less space than conventional charging systems and a 40 percent decrease in required depot cabling.
The Quebec government has a plan to electrify 55 percent of its urban buses and 65 percent of its school buses by 2030.
One of the key goals of the project is to explore different fleet charging strategies in an active bus terminal, including traditional plugs, as well as overhead pantograph systems. Typically, bus terminals in urban environments are space-constrained and were not designed for electric buses.
Hitachi Energy’s Grid-eMotion Fleet technology can provide public transit agencies with flexibility to address the needs of each facility. Hitachi Energy’s solution has been tested at RTC’s Metrobus Center and is expected to run at full capacity in 2024.
Grid-eMotion comprises two solutions - Fleet and Flash. Grid-eMotion Fleet is a grid-code-compliant and space-saving grid-to-plug charging solution that can be installed in new and existing bus depots. The charging solution can be scaled flexibly as the fleet gets bigger and greener. It includes different charging point configurations and a robust and compact grid connection directly at the distribution voltage level.
The system is also available for commercial vehicle fleets, including last-mile delivery and heavy-duty trucks that require high-power charging of several megawatts. Grid-eMotion Flash enables operators to flash-charge buses within seconds at passenger stops and fully recharge within minutes at the route terminus without interrupting the bus schedule.
Both solutions are equipped with configurable smart charging digital platforms that can be embedded with larger fleet and energy management systems. Additional offerings from Hitachi Energy for EV charging systems consist of e-mesh energy management and optimization solutions and Lumada APM, EAM and FSM solutions to help transportation operators make informed decisions that maximize their uptime and improve efficiency.
