BMW, Volkswagen and ChargePoint Announce Initiative...

[SSi3]

https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/usa/...=9&id=T0201702EN_US&left_menu_item=node__8601

Washington, D.C., January 22, 2015 – At the 2015 Washington Auto Show, two of the top automakers, BMW of North America and Volkswagen of America, together with ChargePoint, the largest electric vehicle charging network, announced an initiative to create express charging corridors along heavily-traveled routes on the East and West Coasts. Designed to increase the number of fast charging locations, the initiative will help meet the large and growing demand for convenient, publicly available electric vehicle fast chargers, including direct current (DC) Fast charging locations, and support the adoption of electric vehicles in the United States. In the initial phase, the aim is to install nearly 100 DC Fast chargers across both coasts, with plans to expand the program to increase access to fast charging across the country. These newly installed DC Fast charging stations will be added to the growing ChargePoint network of more than 20,000 charging spots in North America.

With more than 280,000 electric vehicles sold in the United States, EV owners need more charging flexibility while on the go. The express charging corridors will provide electric vehicle drivers access to DC Fast chargers along the most heavily populated and highly-trafficked regions on Interstate 95 on the east coast, from Boston to Washington, D.C., and on the west coast covering and connecting the metropolitan areas of Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. The installations will occur both within and between relevant metro areas, strategically-spaced at a maximum of 50 miles apart, making it even easier to take long road trips in an EV.

“A robust network of conveniently located DC Fast charging stations will go a long way toward increasing electric vehicle adoption and making electric vehicle ownership even more enjoyable,” said Robert Healey, Head of EV Infrastructure at BMW of North America. “The express charging corridors are another important step in the development of the U.S. e-mobility infrastructure that makes longer distance travel a real option for consumers, particularly along the most heavily trafficked portions of both coasts—making the BMW i3 and other electric vehicles even more appealing.”



“Volkswagen believes in a holistic approach to e-mobility in order to create a seamless experience for the consumer,” said Jörg Sommer, vice president, product marketing and strategy, Volkswagen of America. “The investment in the express charging corridor will provide e-Golf and other electric vehicle owners with the added support to travel their day-to-day and popular long distance routes.”

Each fast charging location along the express charging corridors is expected to include up to two 50 kW DC Fast chargers, or 24 kW DC Combo Fast chargers with the SAE Combo connector, used in both BMW and Volkswagen electric vehicles as well as many other electric vehicles that incorporate a DC Fast Charging capability. When charging at a 50 kW station, both the BMW i3 and the Volkswagen e-Golf can charge up to 80 percent in 20 minutes. Both vehicles can charge up to 80 percent in 30 minutes at a 24 kW station. Locations will also include Level 2 chargers, currently the most commonly available public charging stations, which are compatible with all electric vehicles. Level 2 stations can dispense up to 25 miles of range per hour of charging, providing a full charge for the BMW i3 and the VW e-Golf within 3.5 to 4 hours.

The DC Fast charging stations will be part of the ChargePoint network and can be easily accessed with a ChargePoint or ChargeNow card or with the ChargePoint mobile app.

“Our goal at ChargePoint is to get everyone behind the wheel of an EV and provide EV charging everywhere they go,” said Pasquale Romano, ChargePoint CEO. “With strategically-placed stations where drivers need them, these express charging corridors will give EV drivers the freedom to go farther and have an EV as their only car without limitation.”

Installations have already begun on the west coast, with the first location in San Diego County. There is a target of nearly 100 DC Fast charging spots in the first phase, available by the end of 2015. DC Fast chargers along the express charging corridors are expected to be installed in convenient locations such restaurants, shopping centers, rest stops, and more. ChargePoint will leverage its existing customer base and knowledge on usage to pick strategic locations either where drivers currently charge, or to fill in spaces where there is currently a lack of infrastructure.

With the investment, BMW, Volkswagen and ChargePoint are providing drivers with the ability and confidence to enjoy longer distance driving and recharge their electric vehicles quickly, ultimately leading to greater electric vehicle adoption.


Corresponding Social Media
Express charging corridors hashtag: #EVexpresscharge
BMW of North America social media: @BMWUSANEWS
Volkswagen of America social media: @VWnews
ChargePoint social media: @ChargePointnet

 

[TomMoloughney]

Yep. I did a blog post on this and have some information not included in the press release:

http://bmwi3.blogspot.com/2015/01/bmw-partners-with-volkswagen.html

 

[WoodlandHills]

Does anyone know if these charger locations exclude the 200 that were supposed to be installed in CA as part of the Enron settlement? If so, this is great news! If not, then NRG/Enron just got cost sharing partners to help pay for their crimes and we end up with a lot less DC charging points around the state. There might be a devil in the details......

 

[TomMoloughney]

Does anyone know if these charger locations exclude the 200 that were supposed to be installed in CA as part of the Enron settlement? If so, this is great news! If not, then NRG/Enron just got cost sharing partners to help pay for their crimes and we end up with a lot less DC charging points around the state. There might be a devil in the details......

This is not including those - that's an entirely different network that is NRGs responsibility to install. However BMW has the map of where NRG is installing them, so they don't wast time and money with redundancy.

 

[Blue20]

Only go as north as Portland on the west cost. %^$@^%#$&@

 

[WoodlandHills]

My guess is that they will follow I5 south to San Diego and that the 101 will be covered with the settlement sites. This is very good news.

 

[TomMoloughney]

Only go as north as Portland on the west cost. %^$@^%#$&@

For now... This is just the beginning. It's a big country!

 

[Jeffj]

Anything for those of us that aren't coasters?

 

[BoMW]

This is great news for drivers in the USA, I wish that BMW and VW would do something similar in the UK. At the moment the CCS coverage is poor, to give you an example there is not one DC CCS station in London. Where there are stations, most of them have broken down and not repaired, to give you an example, if you were to drive up to Liverpool all six CCS DC stations in that vicinity are inoperable. quite shocking to say the least.

 

[user 1536]

For now... This is just the beginning. It's a big country!

Except that it's not just the beginning. It's the second model year, and very limited progress. This is a good announcement, but no timelines, and few details.

Here's what they already have (just on the Chargepoint network):
2 CCS stations in Portland
12 CCS stations along I-95 corridor in NE
35 CCS stations in CA

Seems like a no-brainer to skip most of CA as a part of this program, since it has an extensive infrastructure, and go the rest of the way up the coast to BC. Then you match the existing chademo west coast electric highway.

Nissan had some program to get their dealers to install chargers. BMW should consider something similar. Personally, I'd rather see the dealers partnering with a local business/shopping center to have the station installed there for 24/7 access, with BMW branding all over it. Similarly, they could partner with a big retailer to put a unit at every location.

I think it is good news, but it's hardly something Tesla needs to worry about (which is what they were saying last month).

 

[TomMoloughney]

For now... This is just the beginning. It's a big country!

"Except that it's not just the beginning. It's the second model year, and very limited progress."

What I was saying is it is just the beginning of the ongoing effort to install the infrastructure. Did Nissan or Tesla begin installing DCQC infrastructure in the first year they were selling EVs?

"This is a good announcement, but no timelines, and few details."

From the press release: "Installations have already begun on the west coast, with the first location in San Diego County. There is a target of nearly 100 DC Fast charging ports in the first phase, available by the end of 2015."

"Here's what they already have (just on the Chargepoint network):
2 CCS stations in Portland
12 CCS stations along I-95 corridor in NE
35 CCS stations in CA"

Yes, but some of those are part of this project. Others are part of the NRG settlement. California has by far the most electric cars and the greatest need for infrastructure. Electrifying the majority of the two coasts is the logical starting point and what Tesla did first also.

"Seems like a no-brainer to skip most of CA as a part of this program, since it has an extensive infrastructure, and go the rest of the way up the coast to BC. Then you match the existing chademo west coast electric highway."

More i3s were sold in California by far than any other state. The scattered CCS locations currently there don't allow for a cross state drive. That needs to be done in the first phase.

"Nissan had some program to get their dealers to install chargers. BMW should consider something similar. Personally, I'd rather see the dealers partnering with a local business/shopping center to have the station installed there for 24/7 access, with BMW branding all over it. Similarly, they could partner with a big retailer to put a unit at every location."

BMW has the same type of a program. They will subsidize much of the cost of the hardware if the dealership will pay the installation. You will begin to see the 24kW DC fast chargers appear at BMW dealerships soon. There are a few dealerships that have already had them installed.

"I think it is good news, but it's hardly something Tesla needs to worry about (which is what they were saying last month)."

This isn't about making Tesla worry. If you believe Musk, his goal is to electrify our personal transportation and get us off oil. So he should be happy about this. When other automakers invest in infrastructure like Tesla has, it validates what they have been doing all along. This is good news for Tesla. I'm guessing that within a year or two we'll hear there is a partnership between Tesla and BMW also, where Tesla allows BWM to install CCS equipment at Supercharger sites (for a nice chunk of change of course).

 

[elptex]

This is a great thing for world-wide progress. What about the UK? It is the 2nd largest BMW i market worldwide (BMW's 3rd largest market globally overall).

So far BMW has really neglected the UK in relation to the i department. Wait times of 6+ months for cars (many people are reporting 10+ months at this time) compared to people in the US being able to get a custom order in under 2 months. Things like this charging infrastructure investment exacerbate the 'problem'. There's a reason we only went with a 3-year lease on our i3: its currently a war of who will win the EV race and infrastructure investment is one of the battles. In the 4 months we've had our i3, Tesla has installed more than half a dozen Supercharger locations in our daily/weekly driving area alone. At the time we were considering between Tesla and BMW, we could have gotten a Model S in 4-6 weeks compared to the 6+ months we faced with BMW. Cost was the determining factor. When the Tesla Model 3 comes out, though, it will actually be below what we can afford and based on how the UK market has been treated by BMW and the apparent complete lack of improving the situation, at this time my future with BMW looks more and more limited.

 

[WoodlandHills]

This is a bit off topic, but why are they putting the Chargers at shopping centers? If you are a traveler, you don't want to get off the freeway, drive 7 or 8 miles to the mall, fight the teen drivers in the lot to find the charger and then do the reverse to get back on the road. On the other hand, if you have an EV and you are at the mall doing some shopping, you are also close enough to home to use your own charger in the evening, again no need for a mall based charger.

Tesla is the only company that is thinking about how these vehicles will actually get used and charged and their network is out on the highway at the exit. What's wrong with putting the Chargers in gas stations?

 

[pdurham]

But, Woodland Hills, it appears to me that, with this latest announcement, BMW and VW are moving closer to the Tesla model of installing fast chargers appropriately spaced along highway corridors, and I believe that is a very significant and positive development. As I see it, we have seen two basic strategies regarding charging networks: the Tesla model described above (fast chargers along highway corridors), and the strategy of installing networks of level 2 charging stations throughout towns and cities, mostly at shopping centers, movie theaters, etc. But I question whether the money spent on these level 2 charging stations might have been better spent on DCFC's along highway corridors. (Granted, the parties installing the level 2 stations are not generally the same as the parties installing the DCFC's.) I'd suggest that the success of the Tesla model (I consider the existence of the Supercharger network to be a real reason to buy a Tesla.) at least partly proves my point. After all, how often do you really NEED to charge up for 45 minutes while you're inside the grocery store? Sometimes, maybe, and sure it's nice, especially if it's free, but do you really need it? And economically, if there's a charge for the public station, you're almost always getting a better deal if you charge at home anyway. I'm not "anti-level 2"--I appreciate that some businesses are showing their support for electric vehicles by installing level 2 stations and their visibility probably does encourage EV ownership. I often patronize those stations to show my support for their support. I'll even tell them at the sales counter, when it's true, that I'm at their particular store or theater because there's a charging station nearby. And for charging at work, there's a good argument that an employer is stretching its money further by installing a larger number of 120-volt outlets than a smaller number of level 2 chargers. (No need to shuffle cars to and from the charging stations during an 8-hour workday, most people pick up enough miles from 120 volts during a full shift, etc.) Perhaps the best model for charging at work is a few level 2 charging stations for employees who need their cars during the workday, and a larger number of 120-volt outlets for everyone else. Bottom line: if the recent BMW-VW-Chargepoint announcement means that the non-Tesla EV world is moving to the Tesla model, this seems like a very good thing!

 

[TomMoloughney]

This is a bit off topic, but why are they putting the Chargers at shopping centers? If you are a traveler, you don't want to get off the freeway, drive 7 or 8 miles to the mall, fight the teen drivers in the lot to find the charger and then do the reverse to get back on the road. On the other hand, if you have an EV and you are at the mall doing some shopping, you are also close enough to home to use your own charger in the evening, again no need for a mall based charger.

Tesla is the only company that is thinking about how these vehicles will actually get used and charged and their network is out on the highway at the exit. What's wrong with putting the Chargers in gas stations?

The Tesla Supercharger closest to me is in a shopping center so I'm not sure exactly what you're concern is. There are multiple goals that BMW is working on with regards to this DC fast charge network. First, the heavily traveled main arteries which will have the 50kW units. These locations will be as close to the highways as possible - sometimes you have no choice but stray a little from the main road to find a suitable location. Aside from the main highways that connect cities, they are looking for secondary locations where they will install the 24kW DCFC for more local use. These will be in shopping centers, municipal lots, malls, BMW dealerships and other destinations. A shopping mall or other destination you go to near your home may also service someone that lives 40 miles away so that person needs to charge to get home. Their plan is a mixture of 50kW units for the main arteries, 24kW DCQC for secondary locations and ChargeNow branded ChargePoint L2 stations for the tertiary locations where cars may sit for many hours.

 

[Blue20]

..... What's wrong with putting the Chargers in gas stations?

You mean something like this? ... https://suncountryhighway.ca/news-media/2014/11/electric-car-charging-station-gas-station-tar-sands-land/

It is a pilot with level 2, not DC fast charge

 

[pdurham]

As of today, we have one SAE Combo DCFC in Arizona. It's at a gas station/convenience store immediately beside the freeway in Tucson. Perfect location if you're driving to Tucson from elsewhere. So a gas station isn't a bad location, except that it's better if there's a restaurant or shopping nearby. It's kind of boring hanging around a convenience store for 30 minutes (I know; I've done it).

 

[pdurham]

Tom, I think I can clarify the point WoodlandHills was making. Nothing wrong with a DCFC or Tesla Supercharger being in a shopping center, but what he was saying is that it should be very close to, if not immediately beside, a freeway. The few times I've encountered Tesla Superchargers, they have been.

And that's a very succinct explanation of the strategy you've posted: 50kW units near major highways, 24kW units at secondary locations, etc.

 

[WoodlandHills]

pdurham that's just what I was trying to express. Thanks.

Given how long it takes to DC charge an EV vs filling the tanks on an ICE, I expect that the next discussion is going to be all about the number of units onsite. Just one DC charger per location is not going to cut it in a year or two, especially on popular routes. Arriving at the charger to find two or more folks waiting will really screw up your day if you have a schedule to keep.

It is all growing pains and someday we can bore the kids with how rough it was way back in The Old Days........

 

[jadnashuanh]

I've had no reason to search out Tesla superstations...but, their documentation says that they locate them near things like restaurants and shopping along well traveled routes so you can make more of your time verses just sitting there waiting for the car to recharge.