EV recharging facilities for Pirelli’s Driver network

Pirelli is working with energy sector company Enel X to set up electric vehicle recharging infrastructure in selected Pirelli ‘Driver’ tyre centre outlets. The two companies signed an agreement to this effect at this year’s socially distanced version of the Milano – Monza Motor Show, which began yesterday in the centre of Milan. They will begin by setting up charging facilities at Driver centres in Italy before rolling out charging infrastructures at sites in Spain and then other countries where Pirelli is active with Driver Tyres and Service.

According to Pirelli, its cooperation with Enel X is just one part of a Europe-wide plan for developing services for electromobility within the Driver network. The tyre maker says Driver centres will place a greater focus on the range of services they offer in this area in future, and it will also offer its resellers “specific training courses.”

The capacity of the recharging stations installed at each Pirelli Driver centre will vary in accordance with the characteristics of the territory and the volume of traffic at the centre. Enel X will offer Driver dealers charging equipment with outputs between 22 kW and 50 kW that are capable of recharging multiple cars simultaneously. Should a particular Driver centre opt to offer public access to the installed recharging infrastructure, details of this will appear on mobility service providers’ apps, such as Enel X’s own JuicePass app.

Infrastructure vital to EV rollout

“Pirelli continues with always greater determination along the road to sustainability, beginning with the product with maximum attention to the entire life cycle, which begins with the careful selection of materials and ends with the possibility of recovering part of the tyre once disposed of, says Daniele Deambrogio, chief executive officer of Pirelli Italia. “The contribution that together with Enel X we will give to the national recharging infrastructure for electric vehicles, the first problem the spread of these vehicles face, has a new step for Pirelli towards an always lower environmental impact and confirms the company’s broad vision with regard to sustainability.”

Augusto Raggi, head of Enel X Italia comments: “Enel X’s strategy for the rapid spread of electric mobility also passes by necessity through partnerships with the most important operators in the sector. The agreement with Pirelli is a natural consequence of this approach because they are a partner with whom we share a vision of sustainable mobility for the present and the future. We will ring advanced recharging technology to the Driver centres enabling easy recharging and total comfort, offering a service that will allow us to bring people closer to the world of electric mobility.”

The Pirelli Driver network is currently present in nine European countries: Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Sustainability goals & EV products

This project is one of a number that Pirelli is implementing in the area of sustainability, where its big-picture aims include reducing absolute CO2 emissions (compared with 2015 levels) 25 per cent by 2025 and the use of 100 per cent renewable electricity in order to reach carbon neutrality for both electricity and thermal energy in 2030.

The tyre maker also anticipates strong market growth for electric vehicles and thus has developed a specific range for them, Pirelli Elect. These tyres are developed with range-extending low rolling resistance in mind and also strive to offer the grip and durability that torquey, heavy electric cars require while reducing in-cabin noise.