Volkswagen Joint Venture Ewiva to Build 3,000 Charging Stations Across Italy

Photo: Volkswagen

Electric vehicle (EV) charging remains a crucial barrier for the auto industry to overcome, and one major automaker has formed a new joint venture to deploy charging stations in Italy.

On Tuesday, Volkswagen announced a new partnership with Enel X Way on a joint venture dubbed “Ewiva,” which is set to build as many as 3,000 charging stations across Italy.

The project will deploy 350kW chargers which VW says will be powered by 100 percent renewable energy. Additionally, these chargers will be available for any electric vehicle (EV) to use

Ewiva officially launched on Tuesday during a ceremony in Rome, located at its first charging station in Via Flaminia 871. The location has 14 ultra-fast chargers that deliver up to 300kW per outlet, built beneath a solar canopy made by Enel’s 3Sun Gigafactory in Sicily.

“The expansion of the charging infrastructure plays a key role in the success of e-cars. Enel and Volkswagen, two strong partners from different industries, have now joined forces to tackle this task in a targeted manner, thus advancing e-mobility in Italy,” said Volkswagen Group Components CEO Thomas Schmall.

The news comes just a week after Volkswagen announced a $480 million investment into retooling its Wolfsburg, Germany, plant for EVs, as part of a larger shift toward electrification.