Belgian fuel station chain Gabriëls has opened in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw at the Bergensesteenweg, the second ultra-fast charger of thirty planned to be rolled out in the Flemish region by 2026.

Like the first one opened in Deurne at the Bisschoppenhoflaan, the station offers, besides traditional fuel pumps, three 300 kW chargers, each capable of charging two cars simultaneously (2 x 150 kW).

On-site, there is also a self-carwash and a Comme Chez Nous Shop. On the station’s penthouse, there are 226 solar panels to feed the station with renewable energy.

Price breaker

According to CEO Ignace Gabriëls, the company wants to expand its electric charging offer further in the next three years and consolidate its reputation of being a price breaker in fuels in this growing segment too.

With a free Gabriëls’ load pass, fast-charging in 15 to 30 minutes can be done at a moderate €0,45 per kWh or 25 euros for a full charge, compared to +70 euro cents in some other fast-charging chains like Ionity.

That’s possible, says Gabriëls, thanks to the high-tension connection costing less per kWh than a regular voltage connection at people’s homes.

This fast charger near Brussels is the second after Deurne, but Gabriëls already opened chargers in Oostende, Merelbeke, Blankenberge, Kortrijk, Roeselare, and Bruges. Others are planned to open next in Erpe-Mere, Harelbeke, and Zottegem.

A fast charging station like the one in Sint-Pieters Leeuw and Deurne is an investment of around €600 000 in infrastructure, without the price of the land.

Investment of 600 000 euros

A small part of the investment is funded by the European BENEFIC project (Brussels Netherlands Flanders Implementation of Clean Power to Transport). The latter is a cross-border project for developing charging and refueling infrastructure for alternative fuels for transport.

For the third call of this European project, 51 projects were submitted, of which 11 have been selected, representing a grant of 1,7 million euros.

The 11 projects should lead to 66 standard charging points and 33 ultra-rapid chargers for electric vehicles, and nine shore-based power installations for inland navigation vessels.