24 hours at the Audi charging hub in Nuremberg

The meeting place for electric mobility fans is somewhat hidden in the south-east of Nuremberg, not far from the trade fair. Two blue signs with the iconic charging station symbol point the way. Underneath, it says: Audi charging hub.

On this cloudy Friday morning, the cubic building with its expansive glass surfaces radiates calm. It had rained the night before, with water standing in small puddles here and there on the edge of the access road that branches off from Federal Motorway 8. Meanwhile, the morning commuter wave rolls mainly into Nuremberg; only a few people depart the city of 544,000 inhabitants.

A total of 200,000 cars are registered in Nuremberg, of which just over 2,700 are battery electric vehicles (BEVs), according to the city's 2023 report. Nationwide, around 1.5 million cars are now purely electric. And these electric vehicles need to be charged.

The Four Rings has developed the Audi charging hubs – charging stations with HPC (high-power charging). HPC is a charging technology that enables ultra-fast charging (from 150 kW) of electric vehicles. It is an advanced form of DC charging (direct current charging). One such hub is in Nuremberg. We talked with electric car drivers on-site about their experiences at the Audi charging hub.

At first glance, the Audi charging hub in Nuremberg is unusual. Typically – and this will still be the case in mid-2024 – public charging stations are unprotected from the wind and weather.

Things are different at the Audi charging hub in Nuremberg, the first of six locations to be built in Europe in 2021. Ralph Hollmig, project manager at Audi, says: "We wanted to start where we and our customers perceive a need for improvement in order to create the best possible charging experience."

In Nuremberg, there is another factor: "We go to places where our customers don't necessarily wake up in the morning with a charged electric car." This means directly addressing the needs of people who cannot charge at home.

At the same time, Audi sees a growing need for public charging facilities – according to several studies, it remains a real problem that the transition to electric vehicles is still not progressing optimally. With the Audi charging hubs, Audi can help meet the global demand for charging facilities on a small scale and offer its visitors a considerably more pleasant charging experience.

It's quiet at the Audi charging hub in Nuremberg this Friday morning. More than 25,000 charging processes have been completed since it opened. On average, people spend a little less than 40 minutes charging on site – and that is also the case today, with several electric cars having driven up.

Audi is open to electric vehicles of all brands and welcomes all drivers. For so-called ad-hoc charging using a credit card or, more recently, a debit card, the current price (July 2024) is 60 cents/kWh, including VAT. Customers driving an Audi model benefit from a lower price: 35 cents/kWh, including VAT.

Some people stay by or in their cars, talking on the phone, working, or eating at the nearby store. From the skate park just a few meters away, you can occasionally hear the wooden clatter of skateboards hitting the concrete. A soundproof hill muffles the noise of the traffic on the nearby Münchner Straße.

A few people sit on benches to recharge their human energy stores – thanks to the sun that has come out. By the way, on the Audi charging hub’s roof, solar panels with a peak output of 22 kW power some of the hub infrastructure.

Thanks to the 2.45 MWh battery-supported buffer storage system, the load on the grid remains low, even during peak times when many cars are charging. The Audi charging hub is connected to the grid with a 200-kW low-voltage connection. There is also a green electricity contract with 100 percent renewable energy.

It's that simple: 1. hold the card to the NFC surface, 2. select the charging point, 3. insert the CCS plug into the vehicle, 4. charge and relax

Now, concierge Dominik also has a few minutes of peace and quiet. "I have to send out a few more orders," he says. He orders fresh milk (vegan milk options will soon be available), soft drinks, nuts, and other snacks from his desk at the lounge’s entrance.  

Dominik has been the project manager for the concierge service at the Audi charging hub for over two years. During his shift, he is responsible for the facility. "I'm our guests’ first point of contact," he says.

His responsibilities include, for example, explaining the charging stations. "There are always people who are charging an e-car for the first time or perhaps have a minor problem or two – I'm there to help them straight away," he explains.

Almost everyone who has visited the Audi charging hub today knows Dominik more than just casually. "The conversations range from small talk to shop talk to normal everyday concerns," he says, opening the door to the lounge. If you talk to the people who charge here, you almost get the impression that they only come by to chat with Dominik – the good soul of the Audi charging hub, so to speak.

The next car is a real eye-catcher: Jasko arrives in his Audi RS e-tron GT¹ to charge the long-distance super sports car in the bright sunshine. Beaming with delight, he talks about how wonderfully the GT, which he has owned for almost six months, drives. "The GT drives so fast, it's really great fun!"

Jasko only recently moved to the tranquil Franconia region for love, having previously lived in Austria and Dubai. As an Audi customer, he benefits from the discounted charging rate at the Audi charging hub. "Charging is definitely much cheaper for me than filling up," he says.

"The charging hub is super conveniently located for me. The car charges extremely quickly here thanks to the 800-volt electrical system. I can sit in the lounge for as long as I want, have a coffee, and chat with like-minded people," he says. "I only do that here because the environment is so relaxed." The enthusiasm that the 36-year-old radiates is infectious. After just under 30 minutes, the GT is fully loaded, and Jasko waves goodbye.

The return rate at the Audi charging hub in Nuremberg is high: "Around 70 percent of people keep coming back – we're like a small community," says Dominik, who first visited the hub as a customer.  

If you like, he will show you around. He can explain everything down to the smallest detail, such as how the three cubes that supply all six charging points with electricity work. "We have 525 KWh of storage capacity per cube, which uses batteries from decommissioned e-tron development vehicles." There is also an 875 KWh storage cube as additional storage.

Charly, the French bulldog, immediately wins everyone's hearts at the charging station. With owner Viktoria, he arrives at the Audi charging hub in a Hyundai Ioniq 6 and hops out of the small dog crate on the back seat as soon as she unbuckles it. Viktoria plugs the Hyundai in to charge; like the Audi RS e-tron GT¹, it also charges using 800-volt technology. This is only her second time here.

"I'm on my way to Munich. Actually, the battery is still easily sufficient, but Charly needs a bit of exercise before the journey, which is great here in the surrounding area," says the 26-year-old, who shares the vehicle with her partner. A small forest called the Silberbuck and a park-like area with meadows and wide paths are directly behind the charging hub and perfect for a walk.   

Evening is slowly falling at the Audi charging hub. The sun is sinking behind the trees, residential buildings, and a gas station near the subway station.

Dominik is also approaching the end of his working day. He checks once again that everything is in order both outside and inside. "A good, quiet day," he says as he steps outside, and the door closes behind him.

Visitors can enter the lounge without a concierge; when they plug in, a screen at the charging station displays the required PIN. Now that darkness has fallen, the traffic has faded. Around the hub, the green LEDs of the e-scooters pulsate – a service provider is allowed to park them there, and they are ideal for small errands while hub customers charge. There is also an adjacent parcel station. The Audi charging hub in Nuremberg can be seen as its own ecosystem, as a meeting place – it's not just a place to charge; it's a place to linger.

Audi is continually expanding its charging hub network. In addition to the locations in Germany, there are now stations in Austria, Switzerland, and even Japan.