[NEWS] Kranj: e-mobility in full swing (pg 1)

Kranj, December 28th 2020 – The first 12 electric vehicles were received in the City municipality of Kranj and two public charging stations were recently set up. This officially launched the electric mobility project, which for the next 15 years in cooperation with an external contractor envisages the replacement of the vehicle fleet with e-vehicles together with charging stations - a public network of electric charging stations and finally the installation of solar power plants with local electricity storage.

This will make Kranj even more energy neutral, the environment cleaner and, indirectly, the health of citizens better.

The Municipality of Kranj (MoK) has been dealing with e-mobility for the last few years, and this year they have started to put it into practice. They are further encouraged by the fact that transport contributes the most to CO2 emissions and noise generation and that the city center faces occasionally excessive levels of dust particles in the air. The beginning of e-mobility in Kranj is considered to be the purchase of an electric minibus in 2017, which runs through the city center. This year MoK conducted a public tender for the implementation of the Electric Mobility project in the Municipality of Kranj on the basis of private – public partnership. The tender was won by a company called Visions of mobility. Together, they spent more than half a year looking for the most suitable solution and found it.

"This project is another move that proves that in Kranj we are concretely switching to green: with the construction of bike paths, plantings and new green areas, green policy, sustainable tourism… With electric mobility, Kranj will become even more energy neutral, as we will achieve a number of positive goals: we will reduce air and noise pollution and improve the environment, thus ensuring better health for citizens. We will increase the use of energy from renewable energy sources, develop public infrastructure for electric mobility and for the production of electricity from renewable energy sources. In this way, we will also implement the commitments of the local energy concept and the requirements of the European Union, " said MoK Mayor Matjaž Rakovec.

Gradual achievement of goals

The project is based on three pillars. The first represents the replacement of 130 vehicles of the municipal administration, public institutions and a public company with electric vehicles, together with the installation of charging stations intended for these vehicles. Under the second pillar, the concessionaire will install 15 public charging stations or 30 charging stations with power up to 22 kW per charging station at five locations. Since they will be owned by the MoK, the municipality will determine the price of charging and thus provide citizens and visitors with charging their electric vehicles at the appropriate or non-market price (charging will be possible with a municipal card and all other means of payment).

The third pillar includes the installation of three solar power plants on the roofs of the public buildings, the covered Olympic swimming pool and the industrial facility of Komunala Kranj in Zarica. These will produce at least as much energy as the first pillar vehicles will need. They will therefore be charged with electricity produced from renewable energy sources, and the surpluses will be stored in local battery storage facilities and will be available to consumers during the period when there is less or no electricity production. Please continue reading the article here.