The ICO and Iberdrola agree on a loan to boost the installation of charging stations.

The loan, which amounts to 59.4 million euros, will allow the acceleration of Iberdrola’s sustainable mobility plan, which includes the installation of up to 150,000 charging points

The Official Credit Institute (ICO) and Iberdrola have announced an agreement for a green loan for a total amount of 59.4 million euros to promote the installation of charging points for electric vehicles. This loan will allow, as reported by the company in a press release published on its website, “to accelerate the deployment of the sustainable mobility plan”; a roadmap that the company led by Ignacio Galán has set for itself with the aim of installing up to 150,000 charging points for electric mobility in homes, businesses and public roads in the next five years.

Thus, the financing obtained through this particular agreement “will allow Iberdrola to strengthen its public road charging network in Spain and Portugal with up to 2,500 new points,” the company specifies. The financing subscribed with the ICO, with a nine-year maturity, represents the fourth green loan that the Institute has granted to the Spanish company with the aim of promoting the production and use of energy from renewable and non-polluting sources.

Sustainable Mobility Plan

Iberdrola’s commitment to electric mobility is supported by its Sustainable Mobility Plan, which, with a timeline set for the next five years, will put 150 million euros of investment on the table to achieve the installation 150,000 charging points in different locations such as homes, businesses, urban roads, cities, and major highways. This plan will focus the deployment on high-efficiency stations such as ultra-fast 350 kW stations, every 200 kilometers on a highway; super-fast 150 kW stations, every 100 kilometers on a highway; and fast 50 kW stations, every 50 kilometers on these types of roads.

How does a fast charging station for electric vehicles work?

Let’s start with the first one. The transformer station will be responsible for connecting the charging station to the medium-voltage grid, complying with the regulations required by the electricity distributor to whose grid it will be connected, and for transforming the electricity from the medium-voltage grid to low-voltage. Why is this important? Because it guarantees the operation of the rest of the elements that will ensure the charging of the electric vehicle and because it is, in turn, a fundamental point from the point of view of safety.

In addition, the most advanced transformation centers offer operating companies remote data that allow them to know what the consumption is, the trends of use, the state of the network and its elements, allowing them to operate and maintain their network of charging stations more efficiently. All of this ensures that there is energy available to the different users.

Once the voltage is low, it is time for the second element of the equation to come into operation: it is the turn of the power converter cabinet. This set of equipment fulfills the function of adapting electricity, which arrives in alternating current, to direct current, which is what the batteries of electric vehicles accept.

Now, that the voltage is low and the current is direct, it is the turn of the most well-known element: the charging post. These posts, with an appearance and functions similar to the pumps we find at any gas station, only in this case the energy is electrical, are responsible for transmitting power to our car.

In addition, they allow us to know the energy that the “electrolinera” is capable of supplying us, what our battery is capable of absorbing, the temperature conditions of the battery and an approximation of the charging time, in addition to payment management. In short, in addition to providing us with energy through the cable, they are our interpreter so that the charger and the vehicle understand each other and we can choose the best charging option.