The Chamber of Economy/Commerce of the Federation of BiH, through activities within projects, strives not only to implement them, but also, through their implementation, to contribute to the promotion of sustainable goals and zero emissions on the path to decarbonization. In this sense, and in contribution to zero emissions from transport, representatives of the Chamber of Economy/Commerce of the Federation of BiH set out on the organization of information sessions on the Sarajevo-Zenica-Bihać-Sarajevo route in an electric Mercedes-Benz EQE 350 4Matic vehicle.
The information session in Zenica, within the project “Community Action for Energy Transition (CAET) in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH),” implemented by GIZ in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, brought together representatives of local self-government units of Zenica-Doboj Canton, with the aim of familiarizing them with the project of citizen energy communities and the technical assistance provided by GIZ in the implementation of these projects.
The focus of this GIZ project is on supporting local self-government units (LSUs) in developing projects within the concept of energy communities (EC): renewable energy communities (REC) and citizen energy communities (CEC).
Since the concept of a citizen energy community (CEC) подразумева a legal entity established with the aim of using renewable sources for the production of electricity and heat to meet the energy needs of its members, or to provide energy services or electric vehicle charging services, this was also an excellent opportunity to promote electromobility in Zenica-Doboj Canton.
At the same time, the information session within the USAID Diaspora Invest project, organized in Bihać, aimed to bring together representatives of business entities and decision-makers in order to connect with export intermediaries from the diaspora. This is a program within which experts from the diaspora, originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina, have the opportunity to visit their homeland and connect with domestic companies, and through joint activities explore opportunities for support in the form of preparing for the export of services or products from our country.
Connecting Bosnian-Herzegovinian companies with representatives of the diaspora is also important from the aspect of promoting sustainable transport, given the orientation of EU countries towards green transport. In this project, the emphasis is placed on micro, small and medium-sized enterprises that already export to the EU market and would like to expand their customer portfolio, companies that have export potential but do not yet export, or companies that have certain barriers and difficulties when exporting goods and services to EU countries.
Although the exceptional response of those present at the held information sessions in Zenica and Bihać speaks of great interest in the topics of the mentioned projects, the star of these meetings was deservedly the Mercedes-Benz EQE. The elegant silhouette of the EQE attracted curious looks throughout the entire journey, especially with its appearance on the streets of Zenica-Doboj and Una-Sana Cantons, where this electric vehicle model is not so common, and we were immediately recognized and greeted with a wide announcement of interest in a test drive.
The sensual body line with gentle curves of the side lines makes the EQE a true business sedan, while the protruding front end, with a pronounced muscular fender, gives it a brisk sporty character. The impressive appearance is enhanced by the radiator grille with numerous small Mercedes stars, while the futuristic design of this vehicle of the future is highlighted by automatic handles, which automatically extend and retract when the vehicle is locked or started.
The impressive characteristics of this modern business sedan are complemented by performance and a refined interior, which is fully adapted and adjustable to the driver. Regardless of the driver’s height, the absolute adjustability of every part of the seat, as well as the height and depth of the steering wheel, allows complete merging of driver and vehicle, which was noticed and commented on during the test drive by those present.
The specificity of the interior is reflected in the fact that the recognizable style and comfort of conventional Mercedes-Benz vehicles has been transferred to the electric edition, and thus all those who had the opportunity to briefly test the vehicle did not show fear of the new and unknown, which is most often the case when first encountering the interior of an electric vehicle, which in most cases is simple, spacious and fully adjustable with only one or two large displays.
In addition to standard recuperation characteristic of electric vehicles, the i-pedal function, and several different driving modes, interesting and specific to the Mercedes-Benz EQE are the recuperation modes: normal, medium,
strong, intelligent or without recuperation, where, depending on the length of the route and terrain configuration, energy recuperation comes to the fore and drastically increases the range the vehicle can cover.
Numerous details are precisely what distinguish the EQE from other electric vehicles, such as the automatic interior freshener of the vehicle adjustable according to preferences and mood, sound clarity and intensity, as well as high-quality materials that round off the futuristic appearance of the vehicle, along with already standard features such as ambient lighting, seat heating, seat massage and many other amenities that only vehicles of the highest class and quality provide to their drivers. Last but not least are the technical characteristics of the Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic vehicle. The provided vehicle had a power of 215 kW (292 HP) with all-wheel drive depending on the selected driving mode, a vehicle torque of 765 Nm available throughout the entire drive, enabling acceleration to 100 km/h in 6.3 seconds with a maximum electronically limited speed of 210 km/h.
The battery capacity of this model is 90.6 kWh, composed of 10 individual modules (battery cells). The already low noise level inside electric vehicles is additionally contributed to by the low air resistance, which on this model is only 0.20. If we take into account the vehicle’s mass of slightly less than 2500 kg, the stated characteristics allow for a comfortable and carefree drive with the full power of the vehicle available from the start up to the maximum speed that can be achieved, which makes the drive even more enjoyable.
The main characteristic of electric vehicles is range, which in the case of the Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic is, according to WLTP, 510 km. Of course, the range depends on the style and manner of driving, but of course also on the terrain configuration on which the vehicle is driven. What was particularly surprising was the “range consumption” when driving at higher speeds as well as the average consumption of the vehicle on the Sarajevo-Bihać and Bihać-Sarajevo routes. Taking into account all the above-mentioned characteristics of the vehicle (power, torque, mass and others), the average consumption on the Sarajevo-Bihać route was 16.7 kWh/100 km, which translated into convertible marks amounts to about 2.23 BAM/100 km, while on the return route Bihać-Sarajevo the average consumption was “higher” and amounted to 18.1 kWh/100 km, i.e. 2.42 BAM/100 km. When we take into account the distances, calculated we get that the Sarajevo-Zenica-Bihać trip cost us 7.14 BAM of electricity, and the return Bihać-Sarajevo cost 7.63 BAM of electricity. It is very important to note that by driving on both routes, upon reaching the final destination, our remaining range was over 150 kilometers.
And to make the travel cost even lower, in addition to the initially charged vehicle by the authorized dealer Starline d.o.o. Sarajevo, the vehicle was charged only once, and that on a slow charger at Hotel Opal Exclusive in Bihać, at the hotel’s free charging station for guests, thereby eliminating the charging cost as well. What we could not eliminate at all when it comes to the cost of traveling with the electric Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic was the cost of tolls that we had to pay regardless of the fact that we were using an environmentally friendly vehicle.
The enthusiasm for the vehicle and great interest in a test drive were not hidden by those present at the info sessions, where they were given the opportunity immediately after their conclusion. On this occasion, in addition to representatives of business entities, the test drive was also experienced by the Cantonal Minister of Economy of USK, Mr. Armin Kardašević, and the Cantonal Minister of Construction, Spatial Planning and Environment of USK, Mr. Almir Imširović, as drivers of change and advocates of a sustainable future in USK.
In the end, the Mercedes-Benz EQE 350 4Matic is the embodiment of a true future vehicle in a unique blend of elegance, luxury and comfort.
We thank the authorized Mercedes-Benz dealer in Sarajevo, Starline d.o.o., also a member of the Association for Electromobility, for the provided vehicle.
