INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Green Technology
BP enhances electric
vehicle charging opportunities
with FreeWire
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B
P has announced that its venturing
business has invested US$5 million in
FreeWire Technologies Inc (FreeWire),
a US-based manufacturer of mobile electric
vehicle (EV) rapid charging systems and
plans to roll out FreeWire’s Mobi Charger
units for use at selected BP retail sites in the
UK and Europe during 2018.
Tufan Erginbilgic, Chief Executive, BP
Downstream, said: “Mobility is changing
and BP is committed to remaining the fuel
retailer of choice into the future. EV charging
will undoubtedly become an important part
of our business, but customer demand and
the technologies available are still evolving.
“Using FreeWire’s mobile system, we can
respond very quickly and provide charging
facilities at forecourts where we see the
greatest demand without needing to
make significant investments in today’s
fixed technologies and infrastructure. The
opportunity to also explore options for
providing charging services away from our
existing retail sites makes FreeWire an ideal
partner for BP.”
“We applaud BP’s commitment to providing
a wide range of charging methods for its
global customer base,” said Arcady Sosinov,
CEO of FreeWire Technologies. “The Mobi
Charger can be quickly and cost-effectively
scaled across vast transportation networks;
flexibility that delivers benefits all along the
EV charging value chain.
“We are thrilled that BP, which is such
a significant provider of transportation
infrastructure, has acknowledged the
promise of our solution through this
investment and partnership.”
BP is committed to supporting the transition
to a lower carbon economy through focusing
www.intelligentcio.com
WE ARE EXCITED
TO BE MAKING THIS
INVESTMENT AND TO
CONTINUE WORKING
WITH IT, TESTING
CUSTOMER DEMAND
FOR THE PRODUCT
AND FURTHER
DEVELOPING THE
OFFERING FOR THE
FAST-GROWING EV
SUPPLY EQUIPMENT
MARKET.
on reducing its own operational emissions,
improving its products to enable customers
to lower their emissions and creating low
carbon businesses. BP Ventures supports
each of these areas by identifying emerging
trends and businesses, making strategic
investments and testing technologies
and solutions for their scalability. The
investment in FreeWire is an example of
how BP Ventures is working alongside BP’s
Downstream business.
David Gilmour, Vice President of BP
Ventures, added: “BP first worked with
FreeWire through the RocketSpace Tech
Mobility Accelerator and we believe its
mobile fast charging technology will be one
of a number of fuelling options that will
be needed to address the future of lower
carbon mobility. We were encouraged by
FreeWire’s expertise and its product. We are
excited to be making this investment and to
continue working with it, testing customer
demand for the product and further
developing the offering for the fast-growing
EV supply equipment market.” n
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