An interview by CEO Media (issuu.com)
We are developing a customer-centric service platform for green corridors to meet the EU legislation’s requirement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 39% by 2030. The aim is to create a professional ecosystem to meet Finland’s national emissions target before 2030.
Founded in 2012, Plugit has become one of the largest EV charging infrastructure companies operating in the Nordic market. ” We are a mid-size company employing 200 people, developing fast in Finland and expanding to the EV mobility space in the other Nordic countries,” says Tommi Saarela, the company founder and CEO, adding that Plugit covers several business lines including project development; however, the commercial EV segment is the fastest growing. ” e are developing a customer-centric service platform for green corridors to meet the EU legislation’s requirement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 39% by 2030. The aim is to create a professional ecosystem to meet Finland’s national emissions target before 2030.” He explains that in 2015 the company started to develop its technology. ” We wanted to design and implement the best possible power charger and the charging solution around it. This is how Plugit Hube was born,” he says. ” As a result of our active development work, Plugit Hube is now more than a charging device, it is a complete charging system for electric vehicles.”
ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR NET ZERO
Today, the green transition is mainly visible in lightweight commercial vehicles such as taxis and service vans. The public charging network for heavy-duty and road transportation electric vehicles is still at a very early stage. Plugit has taken the initiative to build an HPC station network for commercial transportation and the industries it serves in the Nordic countries. Saarela affirms that Plugit is a physically integrated, efficient business. ” We deliver and operate nationwide charging infrastructure projects for businesses and public sector organisations, proving a complete turnkey solution, including design, hardware provision, operations, maintenance and end-to-end software. So we are basically a one-stop shop, we don’t only provide, we also run those systems as well.” Plugit also offers a fullyfunded Charging-as-a-Service (“CaaS”) product, where it funds the upfront capex and owns the EV charging infrastructure that it installs, in return for fixed availability-based lease payments from customers.
Progress is now being made towards meeting the country’s emission targets and Plugit’s business figures speak for themselves: the company has installed over 15,000 remotely controlled charging points and in 2022 achieved 200% year-onyear growth. And that is only the beginning, in the fast-developing Nordics market, fully geared up to have 100% electrified transport by 2030. “In the timeframe we have been given, zero-emission transport can only be achieved with renewable electricity. The companies’ ESG strategies define the emission targets well, and we are making concrete plans to achieve them,” says Saarela.
“IN THE TIMEFRAME WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN, ZEROEMISSION TRANSPORT CAN ONLY BE ACHIEVED WITH RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY.”
BLAZING THE TRAIL
The company is supporting its customers in the green transition by building a PRO DC network of large charging stations. These have been developed for taxis, delivery vans, trucks and other commercial vehicles, and constitute the visible part of an evolving service platform that aims to reduce environmental and climate impacts in a documented, high-quality, and safe way. Thirty stations distributing renewable electricity are already planned. The first high-capacity charging station for freight traffic opened in Tampere’s Viinikka in autumn 2023. The PRO DC station is equipped with Plugit’s Hube, the dynamic charging and energy management system, and has an output of 360kW per gun. It is also equipped with 500 kW energy storage and solar panels. The system is balanced with the electric grid.
PLUGIT FINLAND
Another important milestone was achieved at the turn 0f 2024, when the country’s largest highcapacity charging station for taxi traffic opened at HelsinkiVantaa airport. The company is confident that over the coming years, several similar charging stations for commercial electric vehicles will be built in Finland. Plug it started to build charging infrastructure for Finnish commercial transportation such as heavy-duty & logistics in 2019, and in 2023 expanded to Sweden. ” There is a big drive towards electrified transport in the Nordics and progress is rapid. And not only in commercial transportation. Companies from the steel industry, forestry, harbours and other sectors that have been using hybrid vehicles are now electrifying, committed to achieving net zero by 2030,” says Saarela. Within its portfolio expansion, the company has recently launched a mobile DC Charger, the PRO MOBILE. It is based on Plugit HUBE technology and is powered by Northvolt Sweden’s batteries. The first one is used in Stockholm’s first zero-emission construction site “Persikan” by PEAB Ltd. Another new innovation is Plugit PRO Bridge, designed for electric snowmobiles that keep the entire rental fleet constantly charged and ready to be used. The complete drive-through charging station can be installed quickly and easily without the need for solid concrete foundations.
SMOOTH MOBILITY FOR PROFESSIONAL TRANSPORT
Plugit is fully committed to net zero goals. Working in close collaboration with DIF Capital Partners, a leading global independent infrastructure investment manager that acquired a majority stake in Plugit in 2021, the company is making sure its operations are aligned with the Paris Agreement and science-based net zero targets. “We are in a good position and business is healthy and wellfunded, with a very capable and highly experienced team. Most of the business is still done in the domestic market but we see great opportunities in selected GEOs near Finland. There is a growing number of companies ready to invest in electrifying their heavy-duty fleets and the related infrastructure, and we have several large projects coming up.” He says that last September the company defined its fiveyear strategy, aiming at doubling revenue by 2028, and rolling out more charging stations with major clients. Will the company be able to handle the increased volumes of work? ” We have 10 years execution capacity. This year we are executing about 700 projects, and we can handle the workload well with our experienced team,” affirms Saarela. As the power of charging stations continues to grow, a combination of public and private charging points will ensure smooth mobility for professional transport within the energy transition. Plugit will be an active player in this development. ” We would like to be the preferred partner for creating the industry’s infrastructure, ” affirms Saarela in concluding.
