Worldwide, there are more and more electric cars on the road. But how convenient is it to recharge electric vehicles? How quickly can drivers find a vacant charge point? And how easy is it to pay for the charging process? The answers to these questions will determine the success of electromobility – and thus also the achievement of climate targets. “Making it straightforward to recharge electric vehicles reduces range anxiety and is a prerequisite for their widespread acceptance. Bosch charging services offer the drivers of electric cars easy access to one of Europe’s biggest and steadily growing charging networks,” says Dr. Markus Heyn, member of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH and chairman of its Mobility Solutions business sector. Customers who use Bosch charging services already have access to some 450,000 publicly accessible charge points in 30 European countries – one of the largest charging networks in Europe. The Italian automaker Maserati has now made Bosch charging services available for the first time in its new electric model, the GranTurismo Folgore – not only in Europe but also, in the course of 2023, in the Asia-Pacific region.
Charging services hold immense potential: by 2030, Bosch expects more than one in three new vehicles worldwide to be purely electric; in Europe, it could be as many as two in three. By 2035, it expects one in two newly registered passenger cars worldwide to be an electric car. “We expect a huge surge in growth for our charging services business over the course of the decade – because as electromobility ramps up, so does the need for straightforward and comprehensive charging solutions. We will benefit from this,” Heyn adds. By the end of the decade, Bosch is expecting its charging solutions business to expand by more than 50 percent each year.
Bosch offers its solutions for recharging electric cars to vehicle manufacturers and companies. The charging services can be flexibly and easily integrated into a manufacturer’s look and feel and infotainment system, both functionally and visually, so that the driving and charging experience retain the manufacturer’s individual look and fit into its brand world. As a result, Bosch charging services are making electromobility even more suitable for everyday use.
Maserati GranTurismo Folgore with Bosch charging services
At Maserati, the Bosch charging services are now available for the first time in the recently unveiled GranTurismo Folgore. Once registered for the services, drivers of the GranTurismo Folgore can display the charge point information on their navigation system and on the app. It takes just a few taps to find a charge point, charge, and pay. For example, the service makes it simple to navigate to an available charge point directly, or to pull up information on restaurants and shopping centers in the vicinity of the customer’s position. Bosch also spares users the tedious task of researching car-electricity tariffs by listing which costs and terms of use apply at given charge points. Billing takes place automatically using the credit card details added to the app.
Bosch charging services are for more than just charging electricity
In addition to charging services for drivers of electric cars, Bosch also offers services for charge point operators. Bosch’s software services enable charge point operators to remotely control and manage their charge points and also integrate them into the Bosch charging network. For this purpose, the company concludes contracts with the charge point operators and connects their charge points to the network. On an especially encouraging note, the Bosch charging network is constantly growing. By mid-2023, it is expected to include around 700,000 charge points in Europe, North America, and the Asia-Pacific region.
“With our charging services and our growing charging network, we are playing a decisive part in making electromobility a success story even faster. In this way, Bosch is also helping Germany achieve its climate targets,” Heyn says.
SOURCE: Bosch
