California-based WattEV, a Trucking-as-a-Service (TaaS) company, has unveiled a potential game changer for heavy-duty freight electrification.
The company has unveiled its new Solid-State Transformer (SST), a compact Medium Voltage Power Conversion System (MV-PCS) engineered to dramatically speed up the deployment of Megawatt Charging System (MCS) fast chargers.
Developed with funding from the California Energy Commission (CEC), the MV-PCS replaces three separate components—the traditional step-down transformer, switchgear, and low-voltage rectifiers—with a single unit.
[Related: WattEV to build three new Megawatt EV charging depots at key California locations]
The new design allows for convenient installation on service islands between pass-through lanes, delivering megawatt charging capability to the MCS-equipped trucks expected to enter volume production by 2026.
Unlike conventional 480-volt systems, this integrated design slashes installation costs by taking the utility medium-voltage line at 12KV to 15KV, and connecting it directly into the liquid-cooled SST cabinet after splitting it via simple junction boxes.
In general, the SST offers significant advantages for the EV industry by simplifying charging infrastructure. It accelerates site development and lowers both installation and maintenance costs by integrating multiple pieces of equipment into one system, thereby reducing the need for extensive civil and electrical work. Technically, the SST delivers megawatt capacity via direct, high-voltage conversion to variable DC power. Furthermore, its modular scalability allows operators to easily increase capacity as fleet demand grows, avoiding large and expensive initial overbuilds.
[Related: WattEV has big plans for Megawatt charging]
"As fleets work toward MCS deployment, complex equipment stacks and supply chain issues along with tariffs become real constraints," said Salim Youssefzadeh, CEO and co-founder of WattEV. "The SST is designed to bring MCS to heavy-duty depots faster and more cost effectively. While our focus is electric truck charging, the core of our high-voltage architecture also fits other DC power applications, including data centers, mining, marine, and industrial uses."
