50 high-power charging stations for electric vehicles will be installed in Moscow.

By the end of this year, at least 50 high-power charging stations will appear in Moscow, allowing electric vehicle batteries to be charged in approximately 20 minutes. This was reported on the Moscow Department of Transport's Telegram channel .

"We are continuing to implement the Moscow Energy project and are currently testing a new type of charging station for electric vehicles. Its capacity will be 50 kW—several times greater than the current capacity. By the end of the year, at least 50 such stations will be installed in the city. We will install them in convenient locations: near grocery stores and cafes, in the city center, and near residential buildings," the statement reads. It's worth noting that Tesla's proprietary charging stations currently have a capacity of up to 250 kW.

The Department of Transport clarified that the new charging stations will be equipped with both European and American-style plugs. Electric car charging at these stations can be booked through the Moscow Transport app.

As a reminder, a total of 687 new electric vehicles were sold in Russia in 2020, a 95% increase from the previous year. Despite a nearly twofold increase in sales, electric vehicles accounted for approximately 0.04% of the Russian new car market. In mid-May, a working group under the Ministry of Economy prepared a draft program, "Highly Automated Electric Transport in Cities," which envisages spending 418 billion rubles on electric transport development by 2030, including 153.5 billion rubles from the budget and extra-budgetary funds. The plan envisages that in 2022, the share of electric vehicles in the Russian auto market should reach 1.7%, with total car sales of 1.8 million units, and by 2030, 15% (with a market size of 2.5 million units). The total electric vehicle fleet should reach 1.5 million units by 2030.

In March, it was announced that the Ministry of Emergency Situations had drafted a new set of rules (SP) with fire safety requirements for parking lots. Among other things, the document permits the installation of charging stations for electric vehicles in underground parking lots, whereas the current SP from 2013 explicitly prohibits this. "Electric vehicles are in demand among the population, and their operation requires ensuring safety," the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported at the time, specifying that the new SP would soon be approved and would come into force in 2022.

Currently, Emergency Ministry inspectors can issue an order to dismantle a charging station in an underground parking lot. Failure to comply will result in a fine. A legal alternative to charging stations is three-phase 380-volt general-purpose outlets, which can be used to connect electric vehicles. Such outlets are installed in many parking lots of Moscow shopping malls, business centers, and residential complexes.