Ionna’s first charging station reimagines the gas station

Owners of electric vehicles in North America can look forward to a new DC fast-charging network, one backed by eight major automakers.

The network will be run by the new company Ionna which was established in 2023 by seven automakers: BMW, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, and Stellantis. Toyota joined Ionna as an eighth member in July.

The network will be rolled out across the U.S. and Canada in the years ahead, and eventually have at least 30,000 chargers at an undisclosed number of stations. Ionna refers to the stations as Rechargeries.

The first station will be located in Apex, North Carolina, and sit just a few miles from where Ionna plans to establish its U.S. headquarters. A groundbreaking ceremony was recently held for the station which is being built on the site of a former gas station.

Ionna on Thursday released an artist’s impression of what the completed station will look like. It will have 10 covered parking bays offering charging ports for both CCS and NACS standards. The charging ports will be capable of delivering charging rates of up to 400 kw, Ionna said. This will potentially enable some EVs to charge from 10-80% in less than 30 minutes.

On site will be a lounge area with bathrooms and food and beverage services, as well as a wifi connection, Ionna said.

Ionna hasn’t said when the station, and others like it, will be ready for operation.

Despite joining forces on Ionna, some of the automakers backing the company also plan to establish their own charging networks. One of them is Mercedes which opened its first charging station last year in Sandy Springs, Georgia, where the automaker’s U.S. headquarters is located. GM is also establishing its own charging network, with partners Pilot Company and EVgo.