The first petrol station on Noorderlaan in Antwerp opens as a “charging hub” for electric cars for the first time in Belgium on Thursday, 23 June as a collaboration between G&V Energy Group and Allego, Belga News Agency reported.
Having previously been an Esso petrol station, Noorderlaan now has the first space converted to recharge electric cars in Belgium.
"This is the very first fast-charging location where the petrol and diesel pumps have been replaced by High Power Chargers," the companies said.
The brand new converted charging hub on Noorderlaan includes four fast chargers with a capacity of 300kW. The charging stations themselves distribute exclusively green electricity.
The station also provides amenities such as coffee and free WiFi while owners of electric cars wait while charging.
This change comes as one of the first of 12 set to be completed this year by the two companies. All 12 locations - spread across six Belgian provinces - will receive financial support from the European Union. In total, they plan to convert 100 petrol stations into charging hubs in Belgium by 2024.
Expansion on a larger scale
Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters wants to ensure a rapid expansion of public and private charging points in Flanders.
"By 2025, the counter should be at 35,000, that is, every 25 kilometres along the motorways and traffic axes there should be a charging infrastructure," she said.
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“These companies, together with our city, share the ambition to ensure mobility that respects the planet,” Antwerp's Alderman for Finance and Mobility Koen Kennis said.
Allego currently operates 5,000 public AC charging points covering more than 305 Flemish municipalities and 63 DC fast chargers located throughout all of Belgium.
