If you’re still getting used to the word “electroliner,” start making room in your brain for “photoliner”; a new word that we’re going to explain to you today.

The energy transition toward a more efficient and environmentally friendly model entails a multitude of changes and advances in our society. In addition to new sources of electricity generation and types of sustainable mobility, a series of words are being added that, step by step, are creeping into our daily vocabulary. Thus, those who a few years ago had never heard of terms like “electroliner,” “wind turbine,” or “photovoltaic” have now infused their language with these terms to the point of using them daily unconsciously. Well, today, with the aim of further enriching our vocabulary, we want to focus on a word that is making its way into the mainstream: photolinera.

Indeed, if you hadn’t yet fully accepted the term electrolinera as a service station for recharging electric vehicle batteries – the truth is that today they are still not as common as they should be – now a new term with the same lexeme has burst into specialized energy magazines and promises, with the help of a project, to make its way into the media. So, without further ado, let’s see what the heck this photo charging station is and why it has nothing to do with a camera.

A photo charging station is a type of electric vehicle charging station (electrolinera) with a distinctive feature that makes it unique: the energy used in the charging process is 100% renewable thanks to a photovoltaic power generation infrastructure and a battery energy storage system; offering the necessary power to provide ultra-fast recharges to electric vehicles that need it. To achieve this, photovoltaic charging stations use their own photovoltaic park or those already operating nearby, connected to the electrical grid.

This type of charging station has a very positive feature: it offers a high-power charging solution in areas where grid access is weaker than usual or non-existent, such as rural areas or areas far from large cities or communication routes; this is where investments of this type usually flow. Thus, the photo charging station appears to be a complementary solution to continue building an electric vehicle charging infrastructure that will help us democratize the implementation of this technology, seeking to end the common inequality gaps that these trends cause in the rural population.

The first photo charging station in Spain, about to land

All in all, Spain seems destined to host the first photo charging station in its history. This innovative facility will be located on National Highway 3 (N-3) near Alarcón, Cuencia province. It is being promoted by Eranovum, which defines the project as “a unique concept with all the power needed to provide ultra-fast charging to the electric vehicles that need it.” According to the developer, this facility would save 2,000 tons of CO2 per year and will also have four ultra-fast charging points with over 240 kW, with an expansion to eight points planned by 2032. To this end, the facility will be powered by a 300 kWh energy storage system based on the reuse of second-life electric vehicle batteries to maintain full operational capacity during times when sunlight cannot supply customers’ needs. On the other hand, the station will not have its own photovoltaic installation, but will be powered, through an electrical connection, by solar energy produced by the Olmedilla and Sabinar photovoltaic parks, which together have an installed capacity of over 400 MW.

How does electric vehicle charging work?

Times are changing, and the era in which combustion vehicles were the only ones present on our roads has come to an end. Today, and increasingly, combustion vehicles and electric vehicles coexist in our daily lives. The technology and availability of electric cars has grown significantly in the last decade, and sales now account for 37% of the total market in countries such as Norway (the absolute leader), 1.7% in France, and nearly 1% in Spain and the United Kingdom.

However, recharging this type of vehicle is very different from what we are used to. Although we are fully aware of how fuel is charged in our cars and are beginning to become familiar with domestic charging points, which are very similar to a post with a plug, do we know how a fast charging station for electric vehicles works? Let’s go for it