HiEFFICIENT: powering tomorrow’s EVs for a greener Europe
From 2021 to 2024, the EU-funded HiEFFICIENT project worked to advance one of the EU’s key goals: making transport sustainable for all Europeans.
Its focus was electromobility, and, more specifically, creating more powerful and reliable power electronic solutions for electric vehicles based on wide-bandgap semiconductors. Now, HiEFFICIENT has transitioned from research to tangible industrial deployment, its innovative technologies paving the way for cost-effective, eco-friendly next-generation vehicles.
Since 2024, HiEFFICIENT partners have built on the collaboration fostered during the project, devoting themselves to generating market-ready technologies, follow-up projects and commercialisation activities across Europe. Advancements in semiconductor embedding in printed circuit boards for automotive converters have attracted strong interest from European and Asian OEM) and Tier 1 suppliers.
The development of a highly compact, bidirectional 22 kW on-board charger achieving over 97 percent efficiency has strengthened industrial relevance, leading to follow-up projects, collaborations with OEMs and suppliers, and the new EU-funded project HiPower 5.0. Launched in 2025, HiPower 5.0 is expected to lead to even more efficient, compact and reliable solutions.
Further advances include enhanced motor control algorithms – with improvements in efficiency, noise, vibration and harshness – and simulation/thermal models. These are already being used in demonstrator vehicles and delivered to customers as product-level solutions. A new dual-inverter family and an updated demonstrator have also been developed for emerging applications such as electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, opening new business opportunities.
Belgium-based EMAXSIS, an advanced tech spin-off taking advantage of HiEFFICIENT results, specialises in edge-monitoring technologies and Internet of things software solutions that make the power electronics in electric vehicles and charging networks safer, more reliable and longer lasting. Also built on project results is a next-generation electric vehicle fast-charging power module that is being industrialised, targeting over 98 percent efficiency, full bidirectionality and high-volume production. Last but not least, the next generation of the 100 V GaN half-bridge solution developed during HiEFFICIENT has now been completed and is currently being tested by key customers before entering the market.
“EU funding was pivotal to HiEFFICIENT’s success, acting as the primary enabler for both technical innovation and cross-sector collaboration,” comments Christoph Abart, senior program manager at AVL List GmbH, a mobility technology company that coordinated HiEFFICIENT.
