BMW partners with Chargefox

BMW Group Australia has announced a partnership with EV charging infrastructure specialist Chargefox, which is set to benefit owners of the all-electric i3 and i3s hatch.

The new partnership will afford i3 owners a three-year subscription to Chargefox, which includes an allowance of 250kWh per year.

This roughly equates to six charging sessions when regenerating the i3’s battery from completely empty to full.

The subscription allows i3 owners access to Chargefox’s 350kW ultra-rapid chargers, which can charge an average EV up to around 80 per cent capacity in 15 minutes and are powered by 100 per cent renewable energy.

Once the 250kWh complimentary charging has been used, i3 owners are offered a discounted rate for charging.

Chargefox is a Victoria-based company that late last year commenced its plan to roll out a network of charging sites, predominantly on highways connecting Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane as well as sites in Tasmania and Western Australia.

So far it has sites on the Hume highway in the Victorian towns of Euroa and Barnawartha North as as well as in the Melbourne suburb of Airport West and Toombul in Brisbane.

The EV infrastructure company plans to end up offering 22 separate sites across its network, consisting of more than 100 DC fast chargers.

From BMW’s point of view, the partnership likely comes in preparation for its onslaught of electrified models, with the German brand set to launch 13 plug-in hybrid and 12 battery-electric models by 2023 in its global portfolio.

The i3, which first launched locally in 2014 and was last updated in November last year, consists of the $68,700 i3 and $69,900 i3s, with both prices before on-road costs.

Both are powered by an all-electric drivetrain and 120Ah battery, with outputs totalling 125kW/205Nm in the i3, up to 135kW/250Nm in the i3s.

Driving range for both is pegged at around 260km, while the more potent i3s can complete the sprint from standstill to 100km/h in 6.9 seconds. The i3 is 0.4s slower to the landmark speed.

BMW Group Australia CEO Vikram Pawah said the partnership would be first and foremost a benefit to customers.

“This new collaboration with Chargefox perfectly underlines our commitment to customer centricity,” he said.

“Our partnership will make owning an i3 even more pleasurable. Customers can recharge their vehicle very quickly thanks to the new ultra-rapid chargers, and the best is still yet to come with many more charging locations becoming available around Australia before the end of the year.”

Sales of the i3 have fallen 37.3 per cent so far in 2019, from 75 units to the end of July, down to 47 this year.