Petrol station and shop on the A3

The area with petrol station and shop is located in Horgen directly on the access to the motorway A3. An ideal starting point for expanding the services with fast charging points for electric cars. GOFAST put the first high-power charger into operation in July 2020 and was able to expand capacity after just one year due to high demand.

Günthardt Immobilien AG is the owner of a petrol station with a shop and bistro right by the slip road to the A3 motorway in Horgen. The petrol station with shop above Lake Zurich is a popular stopover for commuters and holiday travellers to and from Graubünden. GOFAST heard about the exciting location back in 2017 and suggested to the owner, Karl Günthardt, the idea of installing fast-charging stations on the property, which, in addition to numerous car parking spaces, also has several lorry parking spaces.

Not a fan, but a pragmatist

At the time, Günthardt was not particularly enthusiastic about buying an electric car himself, but he nevertheless recognised the potential of the new technology. A fast-charging station for electric cars would complement the existing refuelling options for customers, comprising petrol and diesel fuels and liquified petroleum gas (LPG). The length of time customers spend on site during the fast-charging process – typically around 30 minutes – would benefit the shop and bistro.

GOFAST invests, builds and operates

The decision was quickly made and sealed with a contract: due to the attractiveness of the location, GOFAST offered to cover all planning and construction costs for the fast-charging stations. In addition, GOFAST assumed responsibility for the smooth operation, maintenance and technical updates of the fast-charging stations, including after completion. As the owner, Günthardt only had to make some of his parking spaces available, and in return, he gained new customers from the growing EV segment.

Sergio Günthardt Board member Günthardt Immobilien AG

«The presence of the fast-charging stations has boosted our property’s attractiveness without involving any costs on the part of the owner. We found GOFAST to be a flexible and reliable partner, focused on customer needs.»

Electricity supply challenge

As is the case with many projects, the biggest challenges in Horgen arose when it came to the electricity grid connection: a new transformer building had to be built on the property with a cable running from the transformer on the other side of the motorway to enable the GOFAST chargers to produce an output of up to 300 kilowatts. This costly undertaking also required the willingness of the local energy supplier to invest. Since the promotion of electromobility is part of the municipality of Horgen’s energy masterplan, the municipal electrical utility covered the costs for planning, transformer construction and half of the supply cable.

High demand necessitates expansion

After six months of construction, the fast-charging station with two charging points and an output of 150 kilowatts was put into operation in July 2020. The high demand in the first few months showed that GOFAST and Günthardt were correct in their assessment of the location’s potential. Electric car drivers in Horgen increasingly had to queue for a free charging point, so an expansion of the location with four additional charging points and a power upgrade to 300 kilowatts was planned.

Since this option was already taken into account during the initial civil engineering work and the transformer station was also designed for the higher output, the expansion was completed within a few weeks. Since autumn 2021, a total of six charging points have been available in Horgen thanks to two additional fast-charging points. The expansion of the service brought a sharp increase in demand, which illustrates the great need for sufficient public fast-charging points. The charging point in Horgen is in use over 1,000 times every month, and as the figures for the amount of energy consumed show, its potential is far from being exhausted.