S Santa Maria Maggiore (Piedmont, Italy), 20 October 2021 – Today during a press conference in the Vigezzo Valley (Piedmont) – attended by the highest officials from the Piedmont Region and various other institutional representatives and journalists, the first fastcharging station of the Atlante project was inaugurated. Aimed at developing a widespread European network of fastchargers for electric vehicles, the project is at the forefront of technology and sustainability.
Intended to be expanded beyond Italy to other Southern European countries, the Atlante project is the result of the partnership between NHOA Group – which develops and invests in the network being owner and operator – and Free2move eSolutions, NHOA’s joint venture with the Stellantis automotive group, in the role of supplier of charging technology.
Atlante will be the largest fastcharging network in Southern Europe and the first to be 100% vehicle-grid-integrated (VGI), enabled by renewables and energy storage systems. By 2025, the project is expected to have installed 5,000 fastcharging points; the target for 2030 is to install 35,000 of them, all VGI, and integrated with storage and solar energy.
The charging station inaugurated today in Santa Maria Maggiore (Piedmont) represents the start of the execution phase of the Atlante project and forms part of a broader development plan that has led to the electrification of all the municipalities in the Unione Montana, by installing dedicated charging stations in each one of them.
“Most of the approximately 50 million electric vehicles expected to be running on the roads of this continent in 10 years’ time will be doing so in Southern Europe” – stated Roberto Di Stefano, CEO of Free2move eSolutions. – “Atlante will build fastcharging facilities in Portugal, Spain, France and Italy, where 90% of the public charging network is still to be built. The Atlante project is therefore essential and necessary if we want electric cars to become a phenomenon that extends beyond cities”.
“Developing a widespread fastcharging network for electric vehicles in Italy and across Southern Europe is an urgency and we will answer to this need with the Atlante project. Thanks to the shared interest for innovation and environmental sustainability common to both NHOA and the Vigezzo Valley, today from this extraordinary land, we are making the first step in this direction, building a better future for next generations”, – commented Carlalberto Guglielminotti, CEO of NHOA Group.
Today’s event did not only focus on the inauguration of the first Atlante charging station, but also on the unveiling of the development plan for the Vigezzo Valley ski area, among the many initiatives described also the 100% green illumination of the cable car using NHOA’s technology.
The event was attended, apart from Carlalberto Guglielminotti and Roberto Di Stefano, also by the Vice President of the Chamber of Deputies Ettore Rosato, the President of the Piedmont Region Alberto Cirio, the Piedmont Region Councilor for Labour Elena Chiorino, Alessandro Panza MEP, the President of the Vigezzo Valley Unione Montana Paolo Giovanola, the Deputy Mayor of Santa Maria Maggiore Sandra Garavaglia and the CEO of Vigezzo&Friends Luca Mantovani.
“Today more than ever it is fundamental to be ready: we are ready, supporting this project which is highly competitive for our area. In a phase marked by the impetus towards the green and technological transition, institutions must be there for local areas, and for entrepreneurs who decide to invest here. We believe that this project lays out a major pathway in terms of employment, technological advancement, research and development, and us being here today serves as concrete proof of that. There can be no lasting economic recovery without a shared vision between business and politics”, – stated the President of the Piedmont Region Alberto Cirio and its Councillor for Labour Elena Chiorino.