Trondheim electric bus project introduces universal charging infrastructure

ABB will supply fast chargers for a dual-manufacturer electric bus program, helping to make public transportation in Trondheim, Norway, fossil-fuel free by 2019.

The city of Trondheim is making a big commitment to electric mass transportation. Its electric bus fleet is the largest in the country, consisting of 35 fully electric buses – 25 from Volvo and 10 from Heuliez – which will operate on four routes across the city.

This is one of the first projects worldwide where electric buses from different manufacturers are charged by the same equipment. Both bus models will be charged by eight ABB Heavy Vehicle Chargers (HVCs) and operated by Tide Buss in Trondheim on behalf of the Trøndelag County Council.

“Working with ABB enables us to deliver a high quality and reliable solution, which allows operators from different networks to work simultaneously and share infrastructure,” said Per Olav Hopsø, Head of the Transport Committee of the Trøndelag County Council. “This not only provides good economies of scale and return on investment, but continues to support our forward-thinking approach in delivering first-rate modern infrastructure for our region. With the help of innovative companies such as ABB, public transport within the city of Trondheim will soon be fossil-fuel free.”

The chargers to be used are ABB HVC 450P and can recharge a battery in three to six minutes, each providing 450 kW DC output power. The chargers utilise the OppCharge standard, using an overhead pantograph to connect the charger to conductive rails atop the bus. Between 12-15km long, the chargers will be installed at endpoints on routes where the buses are charged during layover time.

The chargers allow operators to remotely monitor and configure charge points and proactively maintain equipment to ensure maximum uptime. 

The HVC 450P chargers will be delivered in February 2019 with operations due to start in the August of the same year.