NOVELTY - The cooling apparatus (1) includes a cooling unit (30) provided on a path along which the refrigerant flows between the second heat exchanger (15) and the pressure reducer in order to cool the charger using the refrigerant. A primary refrigerant passage (22) allows the flow of the refrigerant between the compressor (12) and the primary heat exchanger (14). A second refrigerant passage (26) allows the flow of refrigerant between the primary cooling unit and the pressure reducer. A connecting passage (52) connects the primary passage and the secondary passage.    USE - Cooling apparatus for cooling a charger of a storage battery upon reception of a supply of power from a power supply in e.g. plugin hybrid vehicle, fuel cell vehicle, electric automobile.    ADVANTAGE - There is no need to provide two heat exchangers to exchange heat with the airconditioning air such that reduction in both the cost and the size of the cooling apparatus can be achieved. By determining the radiation capacity of the heat exchanger so that the refrigerant can be cooled sufficiently in this manner, the charger can he cooled without affecting the ability to cool the air in the passenger compartment. As a result, both the ability to cool the charger and the ability to cool the passenger compartment can be secured reliably. By disposing the heat exchangers in two stages between the compressor and the expansion valve, there is no need to increase the degree of supercooling the refrigerant. The capacity of the heat exchangers can be reduced accordingly and the size of the heat exchangers can be reduced to obtain a cooling apparatus which is small enough to be suitable for installation in the vehicle. Pressure loss in the refrigerant flow through the refrigerant passage and the cooling passage can be reduced reliably, enabling a further improvement in the efficiency with which the charger is cooled while the vapor compression refrigeration cycle is stopped.    DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING(S) - The drawing shows a schematic diagram of the cooling apparatus and showing a flow of refrigerant during a cooling operation.    Cooling apparatus (1)    Compressor (12)    Primary heat exchanger (14)    Second heat exchanger (15)    Primary refrigerant passage (22)    Second refrigerant passage (26)    Cooling unit (30)    Connecting passage (52)