Mercedes-AMG is making headlines again, but not for track performance this time. At a prototype charging station built with Alpitronic, the Concept AMG GT XX hit a charging peak of 1,041 kW—over one megawatt—with just a single CCS cable. The car reached the megawatt threshold in just 0.5 seconds and managed to sustain it for about two-and-a-half minutes, transmitting 17.3 kWh in a single minute, enough for around 125 km of range (WLTP).
This marks one of the most aggressive demonstrations of EV charging yet, underscoring how Mercedes-Benz sees charging infrastructure and vehicle development as inseparable. Instead of focusing only on the car’s motors and battery—which had already proven themselves by breaking 25 track records at Nardò—this test showcased the other half of the EV equation: how fast that battery can realistically be filled.
The technical feat was made possible by several innovations:
- A direct-cooled, 800-volt battery pack using cylindrical NCMA cells for high energy density (300 Wh/kg+) and durability.
- Oil-based direct cell cooling for consistent thermal management across more than 3,000 cells.
- A liquid-cooled CCS charging cable pushing more than 1,000 amps safely.
On the infrastructure side, Mercedes-Benz and Alpitronic reworked an MCS truck charging system into a slimmer CCS solution—essentially merging heavy-duty and passenger EV technologies. This approach will feed directly into the company’s next generation of fast chargers, slated for rollout at Mercedes-Benz charging parks in Europe and North America by 2026.
The demonstration puts Mercedes in a small circle of automakers proving that megawatt charging isn’t just theoretical. It also raises big questions for the wider EV ecosystem: few public stations today can handle even 350 kW consistently, let alone 1,000+. Still, the test suggests that, at least at the cutting edge, charging times could soon be measured in minutes rather than tens of minutes.
