Fiat launches Charging-as-a-Service business with E-Gap in select European markets
The on-demand charging is scheduled to come to four European countries to boost ranges of the electric Fiat 500 and its Abarth offspring. The carmaker will rely on CaaS provided by E-Gap, an Italian startup already on the roll-out.
The partners are currently setting up their mobile charging fleet in Germany, Italy, France and Spain and plan to release it in 15 cities before the year’s end. In fact, 13 urban centres, namely Rome and Milan – E-Gap’s launch markets – and Turin, Bologna, Brescia, Verona, Trento, Paris, Lyon, Madrid, Barcelona, Munich and Berlin, have gone live.
The on-demand charging offer is based on vans carrying batteries on board, which deliver the recharge. Notably, these vans also come from Fiat, at least some. The manufacturer supplied E-Gap with 60 E-Scudo electric vans in July this year to be turned into on-demand mobile charging stations. At the time, E-Gap specified a 130 kWh-battery onboard for charging other vehicles with up to 80 kW.
Drivers of Fiat’s small electric cars may book the new offer via the Fiat app. They then need to select the address where they parked the EV, schedule a charging timeframe and the desired charging level, and pay for the service.
In Italy, Fiat released special launch prices and says these will soon apply in Germany and Spain. Charging on-demand costs 50 cents per kWh for the Fiat 500 Electric or the Abarth 500e. Regular prices previously quoted started at 0.58 €/kWh and incurred a travel fee of 8.32 euros (net).
E-Gap aims for any van to arrive within 90 minutes from the customer’s request and, once the vehicle is located, operates the recharge without moving the car from its parking place. Upon completion, drivers will be notified via the app.
Fiat and E-Gap aim to extend their new CaaS business to 15 cities in Germany, Italy, France and Spain before the end of 2023.
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