ABB is on track to meet its energy metering commitments, as it secures prestigious Eichrecht compliance for its high-power DC chargers in Germany. A form of calibrated energy metering, Eichrecht is designed to ensure transparent measurement and billing of energy dispensed from EV chargers to car batteries.

Set to become widespread across the world, this form of calibrated energy delivery will give consumers confidence in the amount of energy they purchase to power their EVs. Historically, charging station manufacturers have been unable to comply with these types of regulations due to the lack of DC meters for this application. Now, with the launch of charging solutions such as ABB’s Terra 53, 54, and High-Power DC chargers, compliance is possible. Both ABB’s AC and DC energy metering meet the stringent requirements of German metering laws and regulations, including requirements for secure charging data transmission to the end user.

ABB has also developed a retrofit solution and Field Validation Tester (FVT) to enable any chargers with CCS, CHAdeMO and AC Type 2 connectors already in the field to secure this essential compliance. The FVT has been designed to calibrate and test the measurement systems of each upgraded charging station in the field and is deployable as a universal calibration system for non-ABB DC charging stations with CCS, CHAdeMO and AC Type 2 connectors.

Frank Muehlon, President of ABB’s E-mobility Division said: “Standards like Eichrecht will give consumers total visibility on the amount of energy they are paying for. It’s a uniform way to ensure that we drive customer confidence and provide compliant energy delivery across the globe. While Eichrecht is setting the pace in Germany, we expect other countries, including Austria and France, to follow suit with their own standards. ABB has been spearheading this drive to compliance to deliver peace of mind for EV drivers through a high level of transparency and data security."

In anticipation of broader standards across the globe, in close cooperation with its customers and selected installation and service partners, ABB’s service team is preparing a major upgrade campaign for DC charging stations, starting with more than 2 000 units in Germany, Austria and France.  This will ensure that all ABB charging infrastructure operators affected by new national regulations about energy metering will receive an offer to upgrade their operating charging stations and that implementation can take place within realistic timeframes.

In addition to certified energy metering, compliance with consumer protection legislation also requires the secure transmission of charging data – via the charge point operator (CPO) and the e-Mobility Service Provider (eMSP) – to the driver of the e-vehicle. In Germany, this end-to-end functionality was tested by ABB, together with the first major German CPO/eMSP and confirmed by the certification body VDE.

The first example of Eichrecht compliance upgrade in action took place at the Audi Centre in Kassel, Northern Germany. As the start of the broader Eichrecht campaign, ABB High-Power chargers at the center were retrofitted with the new solution to provide customers with full transparency over the amount of energy they are purchasing.

Uwe Jarms, Managing Director of the Audi Centre, explains: “Our ambition is to be a pioneer in the field of automotive e-mobility. That’s why we were happy to make our ABB charging stations available for the audit by VDE of meter retrofitting in compliance with calibration regulations.”

In what may be a blueprint for future global expansion, Audi plans to roll-out the retrofit solution to a further 50 charging station locations across Germany.