BMW Group Brazil to inaugurate the biggest electric highway in Latin America.

São Paulo, 23^rd July,  2018 — Brazil is a country well known for its nature, football and music. With a local automotive alternative energetic source based on the use of sugar cane ethanol, flex fuel powertrains the country also presents a good aspect for electrified vehicles: Energy generation based on hydropower plants. The country is now also about to go one-step beyond on the electrification era.

The biggest electric highway with charging stations for electrified vehicles in Latin America will start to operate this Monday, 23^rd, at Presidente Dutra highway, in Brazil. As per a BMW Group Brazil initiative, on a joint-operation with EDP, a company that operates in all areas of the electric sector, the charging stations will now allow, for the very first time, a full electric trip from the capitals of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro states in Brazil. 

With a total of € 250.000 of investments from both companies, necessary to install all six fast charging stations, all located at Ipiranga Service Stations, the project will connect around 430km from both cities. Within the intent to assure total autonomy for electrified vehicles, all charging stations are located with a maximum of 122 kilometers from each other. Estimated time to charge a full electric vehicle with a 22KW battery is 25 minutes to reach 80% of the charge. The charging could be made for until 2 vehicles at the same time per location. From now, it will be only a plug and charge device with no service signing or payment.

The charging stations are located at the following cities:

• Guararema (SP)
• São José dos Campos (SP)
• Guaratinguetá (SP)
• Queluz (SP)
• Piraí (RJ) – On both ways of the highway

After presenting the first turbo flex engine in the Brazilian market, BMW Group Brazil also led the pioneer initiative to sell electrified cars in the country, with the BMW i3 and the BMW i8 available at the local market since 2014. Company has also a leading position for the installation of electrification infrastructure, being responsible, with other strategic partners, to install around charging 100 points in the country.

“The future of premium mobility is electrified, connected, shared and autonomous. We bring to Brazil the global technology reality on products and services in order to sustain the leadership on developing new technologies”, says Helder Boavida, President and CEO of BMW Group Brazil.

Local Nacional Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL) just approved a specific policy that allows predictability to the segment and forecasts the possibility of free negotiation for charging stations prices. At this electric highway, the operation will all be free of charge free for 2018. Both companies will still agree on next steps and costs to be implemented from 2019. As a reference, when comparing to a car that makes 10 kilometers per liter, with a gasoline powertrain, the fuel cost using an electric source is equal to 20% of the total cost to reach the same distance.

Innovation leader on the energetic sector, EDP is the Brazilian pioneer to create projects for smart cities, and solar energy generation distribution, using blockchain technology. It also developed the first Smart Grids lab in Latin America.

“To connect both of the biggest Brazilian megacities with this electric highway is a significant milestone on adopting a technology that will mark the future of mobility. EDP, recently elected as one of the top innovative companies in the Brazilian electric segment, interprets this partnership with BMW as a leading move for the transition to a low carbon economy”, says Miguel Setas, president for EDP Brasil.