Aussie firm Tritium lands major Euro deal

Already at home supplying fast chargers for electric vehicles in the USA, local firm Tritium is now a major player in the European market as well.

In a press release issued today, the company has confirmed that it will supply its Veefil PK 350kW DC unit to 120 sites in 23 European countries. The deal with European firm IONITY is the largest supply contract in Tritium's history – in terms of both monetary value and number of units sold.

It also makes Tritium the principal supplier to IONITY following an earlier transaction in 2018 for the supply of 'high power chargers' (HPCs) to 100 sites. With the conclusion of the latest supply contract, Tritium will have provided HPCs for 220 of the IONITY's 400 sites throughout Europe.

According to Tritium, each site will comprise between four and six of the 350kW HPCs, which the company claims are the fastest chargers "on the planet" and capable of adding 350km of range to an EV in 10 minutes. The company is not revealing what the contract is worth.

IONITY, a joint venture established in 2017 by BMW, Daimler, Ford and Volkswagen (including Audi and Porsche), will be the world's largest EV recharging network once the Tritium HPCs are all in operation, anticipated to be in 2020.

"IONITY has a vision for electric vehicle charging which mirrors ours; it's not just about the speed of the charge but the experience for customers," said David Finn, CEO and co-founder of Tritium.

"These chargers will soon be ubiquitous along the highways of Europe and ensure that the increasing number of EV owners across the continent will be able to drive whenever and wherever they want.

"The sheer number of these chargers will all but eliminate range anxiety while enabling energy freedom and announces to the world that EVs are here to stay."

IONITY's decision to forge a stronger alliance with the Aussie company was based around the ability to expand production and provide the appropriate level of support, says CEO Michael Hajesch.

""We were looking for an excellent strategic partner able to run with us from the start and scale up our operations in Europe. Tritium obviously fits the bill".

At present, each charging session with a Tritium HPC at an IONITY site costs consumers €8 – just under A$13. The HPCs provide charging through the universal CCS plug type.

Pictured from left to right: IONITY CEO Michael Hajesch and Tritium co-founder and CEO, David Finn