ELINA – Balingen

First public wireless electric road in Germany

In December 2022, Electreon announced plans to deploy the first wireless Electric Road System (ERS) on a public road in Germany. The ELINA project will feature 1 km of Electreon’s wireless dynamic charging, and two additional static charging stations, in the town of Balingen and will charge an electric bus. The project will also involve partnerships with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Stadtwerke Balingen, and EnBW.

EnBW’s partnership with Electreon follows the successful project in Karlsruhe, Germany, where a wireless ERS powers an e-bus while driving on a private road at the EnBW training center campus. The goals of the ELINA project are to continue underlining wireless charging benefits and effectiveness through Germany’s public transport sector, and to promote new tools to assist transport operators better plan for wireless charging deployment. The project is being sponsored by the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

ELINA - Balingen results

In Balingen, the commercial project of the e-bus in the first phase of a 400m wireless Electric Road and static charging at the endpoints of the route has already showcased several key results as part of its live operations, including: 

  • With the opportunity, wireless charging on-route, the eBus has been able to operate for many days without a reduction in battery state-of-charge (SOC) level.
  • This would enable the ability to have a smaller battery kWh, thus saving costs and also eliminating the need for end-of-day or overnight charging

Project Details

  • Construction start date: 2023
  • Operation start date: 2023
  • Project status: Live
  • Application: Inter-city public road
  • Vehicle type: Electric bus with a lithium-ion battery
  • Roadway length: 1 km (0.62 mi) of ERS and two wireless charging stations for stationary charging

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