MAN has launched a new charging service for electric truck operators, providing access to charging points across Europe, the manufacturer has announced this week - as it called for politicians to take bold action to ensure the roll out of 50,000 charging stations across Europe by 2050.
Announcing the roll out of the MAN Charge&Go service, the manufacturer said more needs to be done on a political level to help operators transition their fleets to electric trucks.
The company said: “MAN Truck&Bus is driving forward the decarbonisation of transport with attractive vehicles and new solutions.
“In order to make it easier for customers to make the switch, it is now crucial for politicians to promote the market ramp-up and create a reliable financial framework for this.
“This requires clear, bold political guidelines and the expansion of a charging infrastructure suitable for commercial vehicles. Europe needs at least 50,000 public charging points by 2030.”
The newly launched MAN Charge&Go service aims to simplify the charging and payment process for electric truck drivers at charging points from different providers, and make it easier for HGV drivers to find truck-compatible charging points throughout Europe.
It also provides the MAN Charge&Go charging card, which the manufacturer said simplifies the payment process. The card is accepted at over 15,000 other charging locations across Europe
MAN Charge&Go also comes with the MAN eTruck Ready Standard, which ensures that charging in public does not end at unsuitable car charging points, by helping customers to find truck-compatible charging points.
Manoeuvrability and height and weight restrictions are among the criteria of the eTruck Ready Standard. In the MAN Charge&Go digital map, the truck-compatible charging points are listed in two levels: eTruck Ready and eTruck Limited.
While eTruck Ready shows unrestricted truck charging points, the charging points labelled as eTruck Limited have restrictions - for example in terms of vehicle length.
Currently there are around 650 truck-compatible charging locations which comply with the MAN eTruck standard with this set to increase to 1,000 charging locations by the end of 2025.
The charging service was developed so that mixed fleets can also use the offer. The eTruck driver authenticates himself at the charging station with the corresponding card and the payment process is handled in the background.
A consolidated and transparent invoice at the end of the month provides an overview of the charging costs for the entire fleet at all charging points used.
MAN Charge&Go uses the charging network with preferred partners from TRATON Charging Solutions, which the manufacturer said guarantees attractive conditions for users. Customers also benefit from 24/7 support from the experts at MAN Mobile24.
MAN Charge&Go is integrated into MAN’s digital ecosystem. This allows charging locations to be displayed in the vehicle or in the MAN DriverApp.
The MAN Charge&Go service portal also provides customers with full transparency regarding charging costs and an overview of the charging cards at all times.
