First Planned Deployment of 500kW Inductive Charger to Power Electric Trucks in Cold Climates

Salt Lake, UT, Jan. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WAVE Charging, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ideanomics (NASDAQ: IDEX) and developer of high-power, wireless inductive charging solutions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles, today provided an update on its 500kW ultra-fast wireless charging system developed in conjunction with Cummins and the US Department of Energy.

This first-of-its-kind high-power, ultra-fast wireless charging system fully charged a class 8 electric truck in less than 15 minutes in a previously announced series of successful tests, heralding a future where fleet operators could realize near continuous electric vehicle uptime. To illustrate the speed and power of this technology, a typical household in the United States uses approximately 30kWh of electricity per day. A 500kW charger could theoretically supply a day's worth of energy to a home in just 3.6 minutes, or provide a full day’s worth of energy to 400 homes. And this energy is transmitted wirelessly at a comparable level of efficiency to wired charging.

WAVE has continued development work on the system and work toward its deployment. In partnership with Cummins Inc., Venture Logistics, and the US Department of Energy it plans to deploy and demonstrate the innovative 500kW wireless inductive charger to move cargo at a Venture Logistics facility in the Midwest. Venture Logistics is a privately held, full-service logistics company. As part of this initial project, the WAVE 500kW system will power two Class 8 electric trucks.  This deployment is planned for Q1 2024.

Supported by an $8.4 million U.S. Department of Energy grant, the WAVE Wireless 500kW charger is being deployed as part of a consortium project.  The innovative high-power wireless charging systems will help operators to more easily meet zero-emission goals with minimal impact on operations, thus helping to improve the air quality in and around ports, warehouses, and distribution centers.

The project with Venture Logistics is a further example of how high-power wireless charging is bringing zero-emission capabilities to cold climates where ice and snow create challenging transportation environments, eliminating the need to handle heavy high-power charging cables at low temperatures.

More than 12 million medium and heavy-duty trucks are in service today in the U.S., most are still powered by polluting combustion engines. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provides more than $75 billion in programs and tax credits for electrification  giving fleet operators the confidence to transition faster. Several of these programs and incentives include specific designations to electrify heavy-duty vehicles operating in disadvantaged communities and warehouses.