The first Turkish car charging service provider Eşarj will build 1,000 charging stations in the country by the end of 2023.
Eşarj will direct more than 90% of the newly received investments to fast charging points, which it will place in absolutely every province: at least one "point" in any of the 81 provinces, depending on their size and the needs of a particular area.
The controlling stake in Eşarj - 94% - belongs to Enerjisa Energy, founded in 1996. In 2018, Enerjisa Energy completed the purchase of Eşarj and expanded its network of car charging stations in Turkey through cooperation with the fuel distribution company Kadoil.
Murat Pynar, Chairman of Eşarj and CEO of Enerjisa Enerji, said that one of the goals of Eşarj is the efficient use of time: "We give priority to charging stations in places where our customers spend a lot of time, or where they can stop for a pleasant pastime."
That is, it is likely to be either hotels, office and shopping centers, or parking lots near tourist attractions and entertainment areas.
Currently, Eşarj already operates 383 DC and 163 AC stations in 57 Turkish provinces.
This news is very important for the country, because at the beginning of April 2023, the mass production of Turkish electric cars TOGG started. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife became the owners of the very first car; the presidents of Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan received another one from the "trial batch" as a gift. The model will be available in two versions - sedan and SUV.
Thanks to such important changes for the local automotive industry, it will often be easier to move around Turkey. Including for long distances: even the cheapest model with a 160-kilowatt battery is capable of driving 314 kilometers on a single charge. Many people are interested in the speed of "refueling": it will take 28 minutes with a special charge to charge up to 80% of the battery power, the battery will charge from a regular outlet in six hours, according to the manufacturer's assurances.
The cost of such a car is 953,000 Turkish lira (more than $50,000), the first mass deliveries are scheduled for July. Well, at the moment, about two thousand charging stations from different manufacturers have already been installed in Turkey.
It is also important that electric vehicles are environmentally friendly transport. The authorities are monitoring the transfer of production and life in general to "more environmentally friendly rails". Thus, the new Istanbul Airport has joined one of the important environmental initiatives by committing to the "Zero CO2 Emissions by 2050" program.