Omar Hegazy presentation in Strategic Session 21

In Strategic Session 21, “Accelerating the deployment of recharging infrastructure for electric vehicles: challenges and opportunities,” Omar Hegazy (VUB) and Alessandro Bernardini (Iveco Group) set out the current state of battery-electric truck and charging-infrastructure deployment in Europe and the role of Megawatt Charging Systems in a fully integrated zero-emission freight ecosystem.

During his intervention, Omar presented 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆-𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 in Europe, highlighting the role of Megawatt Charging Systems (MCS) in enabling a fully integrated zero-emission freight ecosystem.
He also showed how theAEVETO ??𝗹𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘇𝗲𝗿𝗼-𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝗸𝘀, from infrastructure readiness and investment needs to operational planning, interoperability and data sharing.
Building on insights from ZEFES use cases, Omar also presented how the FLEXMCS hub concept can support more flexible, efficient and cost-effective charging operations, contributing to the broader ambition of reducing costs and accelerating real-world deployment.
The panel discussion, moderated by Eric von Breska from DG MOVE, raised several key priorities for the future of charging infrastructure:
⚡ Flexibility and higher infrastructure utilisation as drivers for faster deployment
🔐 Cybersecurity and secure data exchange for public and private charging networks
📊 Digital tools using real-time data to improve mission planning and reduce Total Cost of Ownership
🏛️ The role of governments through subsidies, regulation, protocols and standards
🔄 Bidirectional charging opportunities, including G2V and V2G testing
🤝 Data sharing, AI and European mobility data spaces as enablers of a more efficient ecosystem