The Megawatt Charging Commonplace (MCS) formalized simply final summer time will pave the way in which for extra electrical massive rigs on the expense of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, an electric-truck marketing consultant predicts.

Enthusiasm for hydrogen fuel-cell passenger vehicles has largely performed out, and megawatt charging will do the identical for fuel-cell vehicles, Rustam Kocher, former Charging Infrastructure Lead at Daimler Vehicles North America, and now a marketing consultant, stated in a current interview with Charged EVs.

Kocher is just not optimistic about hydrogen, saying it is major objective is to be “a method that the oil and gasoline trade can keep related.” Hydrogen might make the most of fossil-fuel trade knowhow as a result of it may be pumped by means of pipelines and saved in tanks like oil and pure gasoline, Kocher famous, however stated hydrogen gas cells are much less environment friendly than batteries and “extraordinarily costly.”

Electrical Island – Daimler Vehicles North America and PGE – Portland OR

“Massive Oil’s received numerous assets and cash to push this narrative” in regards to the promise of hydrogen, Kocher stated. However he believes megawatt charging will “put a bullet in hydrogen” by matching its fast refueling time, which he views as hydrogen’s solely potential benefit.

“With MCS, it is the identical velocity,” he stated. “Actually, it could be quicker, so hydrogen can go pound salt.”

When introduced final summer time, MCS was stated to supply a “affordable” cost time for Class 6, 7, and eight business autos. These autos are anticipated to make use of very massive battery packs, requiring far more energy for fast charging than the 350 kw that is at the moment the higher finish for the Mixed Charging Commonplace (CCS) utilized by passenger vehicles.

Electrical Island – Daimler Vehicles North America and PGE – Portland OR

MCS goals to ship quick charging a bundle that, very like CCS, permits for charging stations to be appropriate with autos from completely different producers. Even Tesla, which went its personal method with passenger-car quick charging, has confirmed megawatt charging tech for each the Cybertruck and Semi, however it hasn’t signed on for using the cumbersome MCS connector.

Megawatt charging stations for vehicles current more durable challenges for siting than these designed for passenger vehicles, nevertheless, as a result of they not solely must make room for greater vehicles however be at a degree within the grid that may assist an influence degree of 10 MW or extra.

WattEV electrical truck cease rendering

One of many first such stations is Portland’s Electrical Island web site, developed by Daimler Vehicles North America (Kocher’s former employer) and utility Pacific Fuel & Electrical. One other template stands out as the electrical truck cease deliberate by startup WattEV in Bakersfield, California, aiming for 40 charging stalls and 25 MW of solar-supplemented charging.

Maybe extra complicated although is that corporations which have championed MCS—like Daimler Vehicles—are additionally investing in hydrogen fueling. So it is truthful to say the warfare between these applied sciences is not anyplace close to over but.