BYD announced the rollout of its first Flash Chargers in Europe, capable of charging EVs in just 5 minutes. The company introduced its first chargers in the UK and Germany and promised to build 3,000 chargers across Europe and 300 across the UK by the end of 2027.

The company’s Flash Chargers aren’t exactly new, but they are new to European drivers. Just one of BYD’s Flash Charging stations can deliver up to 1,500 kW of charging power, which is three times more than Tesla’s V4 Superchargers.

Additionally, BYD plans to undercut the competition from Tesla and Ionity and offer cheaper fares. It plans to do that by leveraging batteries. These batteries will charge overnight during off-peak hours and provide cheaper electricity to consumers. Additionally, BYD believes it can charge more EVs throughout the day compared to the competition, which will push prices down even further.

Naturally, if you want to utilize BYD’s fast chargers to the fullest, you have to own one of BYD’s EVs equipped with the latest Blade Battery 2.0. This battery can already be found in some BYD EVs, but only one model sold in Europe is compatible with the Flash Chargers, and that’s the Denza Z9 GT. At least for now.

Just a 5-minute charge will refill the battery from 10% to 70%, while a “full” charge from 10% to 97% takes only 9 minutes. Additionally, the technology promises minimal performance loss in low-temperature environments.

Via

Chargefox has announced that it has teamed up with Viva Energy to make Shell’s Recharge EV charging sites available to Chargefox EV charging app users.

The agreement will initially bring four Shell Recharge charging sites to the Chargefox network, which can be used either through the phone app or an RFID card.

• Reddy Express Mt Annan NSW
• Viva Energy Hub Corio VIC
• OTR Linden Park SA
• OTR Pulteney Street SA

EV drivers can now access Shell Recharge charging plugs, including ultra‑fast 350kW chargers, directly through the Chargefox app, with no extra accounts or steps required, making the whole process of finding and charging at a site simpler.

According to Chargefox, this start will lead to more sites coming online over the next 12 months, with a strong Shell Recharge site pipeline in the works. More high‑powered charging locations are expected to come online as the network expands.

By joining Chargefox, Shell Recharge chargers are now visible to hundreds of thousands of EV drivers who rely on the Chargefox app to plan trips, check live charger availability and power their journeys with confidence.

Chargefox is emerging as the largest network outside Tesla, boosting hopes that EV users will not have to download multiple apps on their phones to find charging sites on the road.

Alongside the addition of Shell Recharge chargers, Chargefox has recently expanded access to other major charging networks, including bp pulse, EVX and AGL, significantly increasing coverage across metropolitan, regional and rural Australia.

The addition of chargers in the Chargefox app will help over 300,000 users to see and use additional fast-charging plugs, reducing charging anxiety, particularly for new EV drivers and those travelling.

Chargefox says this Shell Recharge roaming deal helps it strengthen its position as Australia’s leading EV charging platform by expanding access to charging options across metropolitan, regional, and rural areas nationwide.

This is only a good thing for drivers who want to travel around the country without needing multiple apps to get around. We look forward to testing this on our upcoming road tests and sharing the experience in the coming months.

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• Alpitronic’s new megawatt chargers are sleek and efficient.
• They’re currently being tested at the company’s North Carolina headquarters.
• Megwatt chargers are way faster than existing stations, with some charging batteries from 10-80% in 7 minutes or less.

Italian charging hardware provider Alpitronic is testing its new HYC1000 megawatt chargers at its North American headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company confirmed today. The chargers can deliver up to 1,000 kilowatts of power to a single port for semi trucks, and up to 600 kW for passenger EVs. That’s way beyond what the fastest-charging EVs in the U.S. can currently accept. 

Still, the technology could usher in a new era of ultra-fast charging in North America and encourage automakers to roll out newer EVs capable of charging at higher rates. Charging is one of the bottlenecks in mass adoption of EVs, but such high power systems can make it as seamless as refueling a gas car.

In a recent video from the Out Of Spec Reviews YouTube channel, Alpitronic Americas President Mike Doucleff explained how exactly the HYC1000 chargers work, what’s different from other large charging networks, and how EV drivers will benefit from the tech.

For starters, Alpitronic is one of the fastest-growing charging hardware providers in the U.S. In just a couple of years, it has inked deals with several leading charging networks like Ionna, Walmart, Mercedes-Benz High Power Charging, Electrify America, and BP Pulse. Those networks have already deployed hundreds of Alpitronic HYC400 chargers nationwide and continue to do so at a rapid clip. 

The newer HYC1000 charger takes things further. The megawatt dispensers are slim and tall rectangular units, with each capable of holding two cables. They support the Tesla-style NACS cables, CCS cables and the Megawatt Charging Standard (MCS) cable for heavy duty trucks; they can be configured with either of these combinations depending on the network provider’s needs. They also have swinging arms at the top that carry the cable weight, a vehicle-facing touchscreen to display charging details, and a card reader.

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Each tower has two plugs, both of which can simultaneously deliver up to 600 amps and a 1,000 volts, which translates to 600 kW of power. The fastest chargers in the U.S., like the Tesla V4 Superchargers and the Gravity Charging Center in New York City, top out at 500 kW. No EVs in the U.S. can accept that sort of power at the moment. The Porsche Cayenne Electric, BMW iX3, and Lucid Gravity all top out at about 400 kW. 

Photo by: Alpitronic

The modularity of these chargers is also impressive, at least on paper. The chargers can be configured to deliver 1,500 amps and 1,000 volts with the MCS standard. So one location could have semi trucks and passenger EVs charging at the same time, depending on how the site is designed and the combination of available plugs. The company also worked with Mercedes-AMG to develop a special version of the HYC1000 capable of delivering 1,000 kW to a passenger EV. The Concept AMG GT XX peaked at 1,041 kilowatts during a test run in Italy last year. 

Furthermore, the dispensers’ distributed power delivery is fascinating. The main cabinet consists of eight 125 kW silicon carbide power modules, capable of powering eight individual charging towers. Each of these 125 kW modules in the cabinet is further subdivided into 62.5 kW units for a more precise distribution of power depending on the demand at each stall. 

Alpitronic HYC1000 Distributed Megawatt Charging

Photo by: Alpitronic

For example, if a Chevy Equinox EV that peaks at 150 kW and a Hyundai Ioniq 5, which can charge at up to 350 kW, are parked adjacent, the charger can deliver those speeds precisely. It can match that demand without wasting a single tower’s maximum capability on a car that can’t use it. Moreover, EVs usually need their full charging power at a low state of charge, which then tapers off to slower speeds as charging progresses, which makes such smart power management even more beneficial. 

To be fair, Alpitronic isn’t the only one doing this dynamic load balancing. Tesla, ChargePoint, and Electrify America have all adopted similar approaches.

That said, megawatt charging is already getting democratized in China on mass market models from BYD and Geely. Plus, Alpitronic isn’t the only company rolling out megawatt chargers in the U.S. Tesla has started rolling out its Megachargers for the Semi, and Kempower is planning to do the same for electric semi trucks.

However, it’s starting to look like this tech could also someday trickle down to passengers EVs in the U.S., which would be a big win for EV adoption.

Contact the author: suvrat.kothari@insideevs.com

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• Tesla confirms it’s turning Semi charging from a tiny pilot program into a real long-haul Megacharger network.
• The Megacharger map lists 64 new locations showing actual usable corridors for trucks to take.
• Tesla’s Semi push is not limited to the United States; Europe is clearly in the plans too.

There are currently just two Tesla Megachargers charging Tesla Semi trucks. One near Stockton, California, and another near Reno, Nevada. But their number will increase rapidly now that Tesla has added 64 additional Megacharger locations listed as “coming soon.”

The manufacturer hasn’t provided an exact timeline for the Megacharger rollout, but its Q4 shareholder report contained a map showing 37 locations that would enter service in 2026. Previously, in April of 2025, Tesla’s Semi program boss, Dan Priestly, said at the ACT Expo that the company aimed to have 46 Megachargers online by early 2027.

Photo by: Tesla

Tesla could have added more chargers to its 2027 rollout plan or the remaining 18 locations will be built at a later date. California and Texas will have over 50% of these new Megachargers, with 18 and 17 locations, respectively, and important hubs are also coming to Washington state, Georgia and Florida, as well as the city of Chicago, which has four locations planned. The goal of the expansion is to create corridors that enable viable routes across the United States.

The news of the Megacharger network expansion comes from Jason Gies, who works for Tesla’s business development department for the Semi truck. He said in a LinkedIn post that “You can see Megachargers and coming soon sites forming a backbone across the country. Chicago is becoming a real anchor. The Southeast is filling in. Corridors are starting to connect, not just scatter pins.”

After missing the original plan to start production of the Semi in 2019, it is finally starting in 2026. Tesla has given the truck a refresh, updated its specs, and confirmed it can charge at 1.2 megawatts. In late December, Tesla published a video on X showing a live charging session of a Semi topping up from a Megacharger and reaching over 1.2 MW (1,206 kW).

The Semi will be available in Standard Range form with up to 325 miles of range, fully loaded, or in the bigger-battery Long Range model, which pushes the range to 500 miles. Tesla doesn’t state the battery sizes for either version, but they should be around 550 kW and 875 kW, respectively, and both can charge to 60% in around 30 minutes.

Tesla is also looking to establish a Megacharger network in Europe, where it plans to launch the Semi at some point in the near future. We don’t have details yet, and all we know now is that David Forer, a senior project developer for charging at Tesla, mentioned Megachargers in Europe when discussing a job listing on LinkedIn.

In an interview posted yesterday on X, Elon Musk confirmed that a European version of the Semi is also planned and it should arrive “hopefully next year.” This confirms the need for a European Megachager network, although that’s likely further in the future, and it may initially be one or two locations, just like it is right now in the U.S., before the planned expansion.

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