Mercedes takes the guesswork out of EV charging in Vancouver area

Mercedes-Benz Canada is installing eight high-power charging hubs in the Metro Vancouver area, with chargers capable of 400-kW charging speeds.

Mercedes-Benz G 580 with EQ Technology at HPC charger — *A Mercedes-Benz G 580 with EQ Technology is plugged into an HPC charging station. – Mercedes-Benz Canada photo*

Mercedes-Benz Canada is simplifying things for electric vehicle drivers who are probably sick and tired of trying to figure out which public charging stations their vehicles can connect to or fiddling with adapters.

The company has opened three EV charging hubs and will install five more, and every charging stall is equipped connectors for the two most common EV charging ports in Canada.

Each charging stall includes Combined Charging System 1 (CCS-1) and North American Charging Standard (NACS) connectors. There are four charging cables at each stall.

All eight hubs are opening across the Metro Vancouver region.

*There are four charger cables – two for NACS and two for CCS – at every Mercedes-Benz HPC hub. – Mercedes-Benz Canada photo*

High-power charging hubs

Each of the stations is what Mercedes-Benz calls a high-power charging (HPC) hub.

These are the first Mercedes-Benz HPC hubs in Canada. The company already operates more than 650 of these in the United States.

The chargers are capable of charging vehicles at speeds up to 400 kW. For reference, typically publicly accessible Level 3 charging stations top out around 320 kW.

The company said its HPC chargers can add up to 303 kilomtres of driving range to a vehicle in as little as 10 minutes.

“Launching our first Canadian hubs demonstrates how Mercedes-Benz is redefining the charging experience. With our new design, every stall supports every vehicle – no adapters, no barriers – reflecting our commitment to simplicity, reliability, and access for all. It’s an important step in building the infrastructure EV ownership demands while strengthening the public charging network in Canada,” said Heiko Schmidt, president and CEO, Mercedes-Benz HPC North America and Mercedes-Benz HPC Canada, in a news release.

The eight HPC hubs are opening in retail and destination locations.

Locations include:

Abbotsford – Abbotsford Power Centre (now open)
Coquitlam – Sunwood Square
Nanaimo – Woodgrove Shopping Centre
Penticton – Penticton Lakeside Resort
Pitt Meadows – Meadowvale Shopping Centre (now open)
Squamish – Squamish Station
Surrey – Panorama Village
Tsawwassen – Tsawwassen Mills (now open)

The company said Plug and Charge will be available for supported vehicles. Plug and Charge simplifies billing by automatically billing for charging, without drivers having to tap or use cards. A one-time setup is required.