The Ministry of Industry and Trade has just announced the draft National Technical Regulation on charging pillars and electric vehicle charging stations. The draft stipulates two main management objects including electric vehicle charging pillars and electric vehicle charging stations installed in many different types of spaces.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in fact, charging poles and charging stations are deployed in many types of spaces such as outdoor parking lots, basements, shopping centers, rest stops, gas stations, bus stations, warehouses, industrial parks, residential areas and public service points.
Each type has different site conditions, electricity supply, ventilation, drainage, fire prevention and fighting, vehicle traffic and operating requirements. If there are no unified minimum requirements, the same type of equipment can be installed in many different ways, generating risks during use.
The promulgation of regulations is necessary to create a mandatory management framework at a minimum level, as a basis for entities to carry out design, investment, import, installation, operation, inspection and post-inspection.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the electric vehicle market in Vietnam has developed rapidly in recent years, with the participation of domestic manufacturing and assembly enterprises and import enterprises.
According to statistics, in 2023, there were 15,676 pure electric cars consumed, of which 15,486 were domestically produced and assembled and 190 were imported.
In the first 6 months of 2024, the number of net electric cars consumed reached 17,536 vehicles, of which 17,482 vehicles were manufactured and assembled domestically and 54 vehicles were imported. These figures show a significant growth rate of electric vehicles and corresponding demand for charging infrastructure.
Many businesses have invested, produced, imported, and provided charging pillars and charging services. Charging systems are developed according to many models, including charging networks invested by vehicle manufacturers; charging pillars at dealerships; charging pillars sold or installed for customers; public charging networks operated by independent businesses; charging solutions at workplaces, parking lots or service areas.
A large network has developed about 150,000 charging ports with a capacity of up to 360 kW nationwide. In addition, many domestic and foreign suppliers are participating in the market for equipment, software, payment, operation and maintenance.
Diversity in subjects, technology, connector standards, capacity and business models creates motivation for market development, but also sets unified requirements for safety and quality.
According to the draft of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, regarding technical regulations for charging pillars, charging pillars must have a structure that allows safe and reliable connection and power transmission in normal usage conditions, minimizing dangers for users and the surrounding environment.
Safety requirements include electrical shock protection; conductive interface; actuator; cable cluster; structure and testing; overload and short circuit protection. This reference ensures that QCVN's requirements are compatible with international standards, have available testing methods and evaluation criteria.
Charging poles must meet the additional requirements of TCVN 13078-23:2020 because they have large DC power, voltage and current converters, requiring separate control and protection mechanisms. The measurement of electricity integrated in the pole used for payment must be carried out in accordance with the law on measurement.
Regarding technical regulations on charging stations, charging stations must ensure safety throughout the design, construction, acceptance, operation, maintenance, renovation and termination of operation.
The design must synchronize the electrical system, charging poles, protection, ground connection, lightning protection, control, monitoring, fire prevention and fighting, lighting, signs and traffic. The equipment must be suitable for temperature, humidity, rain and sun, dust, corrosion, vibration and collision risk conditions.
The station's location must be suitable for the function of the area, traffic organization and not obstruct entrances, escape routes or fire fighting routes. The minimum width of the internal road is 3.5 m for one lane and 6 m for two lanes.
Typical car chargers have dimensions of no less than 2.5 m x 5.0 m; in case of renovation on the current foundation, the width is no less than 2.3 m.
For buses, trucks, tractor-trailers and specially arranged cases, the dimensions are determined according to the vehicle, radius, cable length and operating plan.
