Rheinmetall launches pilot project for innovative curb stone chargers

Rheinmetall, the City of Cologne and TankE GmbH have embarked on a pilot project to install curb stone charger infrastructure in public streets. The objective of the project is to integrate and pilot test Rheinmetall curb stone chargers in two different parts of the city to validate their acceptance and their urbanistic and design advantages. The city recently signed a letter of intent to this effect. The pilot project is slated to begin this summer.

Integrating the charger electronics into a curb stone turns it into de facto “charging pole”, though without the associated limitations. “We thank the City of Cologne for its planned support in pilot testing our forward-looking curb stone chargers, which help to overcome a major hurdle in the transformation to greater e-mobility, while blending almost invisibly into the urban landscape”, declared Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger. “We particularly appreciate the city’s willingness to implement the project right away, because there’s no time to lose on the road to modern, environmentally sustainable mobility.”

Jörn Hansen, head of corporate development at TankE GmbH, called the pilot project “a further step in the development of innovative e-mobility projects in Cologne”, citing the installation of the first public charging station in 2010, the charging infrastructure for the first fully electric bus line, advances with 2nd life storage technology and inductive charging for taxis. “And now at TankE we’re testing another innovative technology together with Rheinmetall and the City of Cologne that will create an alternative way of charging electric vehicles in public streets that doesn’t interfere with urban aesthetics”, says Hansen.