The AC and DC chargers have been supplied to Dongfeng Honda – a joint venture between China’s Dongfeng Motor Group and Japan’s Honda Motor Company – to support final factory inspection of its best-selling models.
The ABB units have been installed in the electric vehicle assembly line allowing each EV to be test-charged before leaving the factory. They will also establish that every car can correctly receive both an AC and a DC charge. The plant, located in the Wuhan Economic and Technological Development Zone, in China’s Hubei Province, mainly produces Dongfeng Honda’s best-selling models and the more than 980,000 square meter large site will help the company meet surging demand in China for EVs.
A range of ABB chargers have been selected for use throughout the assembly line, chosen based on Dongfeng Honda’s previous experience with ABB’s low- and medium-voltage distribution products. Standard 60kW Terra 63Z DC chargers and EVinn 7kW AC chargers have been installed on the car inspection line and fault analysis area. In the tighter confines of the inspection line, the smaller 120kW 2 in 1 Terra 124Z DC charger is used.
Data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) shows more than 1.2 million EVs were sold in China in 2019 – the second consecutive year of more than one million EV sales in the country.
China’s New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Plan (2021-2035) estimates that by 2025, a quarter of new vehicles sold in China will be EVs; it further estimates that by 2030 China will have more than 64 million EVs on the road.
Frank Muehlon, Head of ABB’s global business for E-mobility Infrastructure Solutions, said: “Charging capacity needs to grow hand-in-hand with China’s booming EV sales and adoption. With the development of the country’s new energy automobile industry, car manufacturers are transforming to meet consumers’ increasing preference for EVs. We are very pleased to help Dongfeng Honda realize its EV development strategy.”
Muehlon added that ABB would continue to increase its investment in EV charging technology to continuously improve users’ charging experience.
