Energy company Shell has joined forces with the Ionity charging network operator to supply European-wide electric vehicle charging points.
It will first be fitting 80 high-powered charging points across 10 countries that could fully charge a vehicle three times faster than normal, with next-generation EVs able to be charged in five to eight minutes.
Ionity is a joint-venture between BMW Group, Daimler AG, Ford Motor Group and Volkswagen Group, which together will create a charging network of 350-kilowatt points across the continent to allow easier mobility for EV drivers.
The venture covers the UK, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia – spanning the entire central strip of Europe.
This is part of Shell’s movement from fossil fuels towards more environmentally-friendly energy solutions, with the brand also saying that if people have more accessible solutions to charge their electric vehicles more will be bought.
István Kapitány, Shell’s global executive vice president of retail, said: “Customers want to go on long journeys in their electric vehicles and feel confident that there are reliable, comfortable and convenient places to charge them quickly.
“Demand for electric vehicle charging on Europe’s major highways is set to grow rapidly. We are pre-empting drivers’ need to charge quickly by becoming one of IONITY’s major partners, giving customers access to the fastest charge points across 10 European countries.”
Ionity’s chief executive Dr. Michael Hajesch added: “IONITY and Shell share a common goal: to enable convenient long-distance travel with electric vehicles across Europe by providing reliable fast-charging infrastructure.
“Joining forces means combining Shell’s long history and experience in retail with our state-of-the-art technology for fast charging. It will significantly increase the customer satisfaction of EV drivers.”
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