VW – Page 3372 – I wish I had more to offer

Thyssenkrupp’s top shareholder appoints ex-Volkswagen CEO

FILE PHOTO: Former Volkswagen head and former CEO of German luxury carmaker BMW, Bernd Pischetsrieder arrives at a courtroom in Munich before the start of his trial October 24, 2011. Pischetsrieder is accused of tax evasion. REUTERS/Michael Dalder FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The Alfried Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach Foundation, Thyssenkrupp’s (TKAG.DE) top shareholder, has appointed… Continue reading Thyssenkrupp’s top shareholder appoints ex-Volkswagen CEO

UPDATE 1-Volkswagen says it may use Ford’s U.S. manufacturing capacity

Volkswagen AG CEO Herbert Diess and chief lobbyist Thomas Steg face reporters as they arrive for a meeting between senior Trump administration officials and top executives of Daimler AG and Volkswagen and at the White House in Washington, U.S., December 4, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Volkswagen’s (VOWG_p.DE) chief executive said on Tuesday after… Continue reading UPDATE 1-Volkswagen says it may use Ford’s U.S. manufacturing capacity

Handelsblatt Auto summit: BMW sees itself well positioned with Elektrostrategie in the USA

BMW manager Oliver Zipse “You have to accept the primacy of politics.” (Photo: Uta Wagner for Handelsblatt) Wolfsburg is relaxed BMWProduction Manager Oliver Zipse on the Handelsblatt car summit, Because the manager knows: In the discussion about tariffs and added value with the US government has BMW good arguments. “Long before the issue of tariffs… Continue reading Handelsblatt Auto summit: BMW sees itself well positioned with Elektrostrategie in the USA

Handelsblatt Auto Summit: Volkswagen announces the end of the internal combustion engine

VW production director Michael Jost Energy balance for the entire life cycle of a vehicle. (Photo: Uta Wagner for Handelsblatt) Wolfsburg product strategy is nothing new for Michael Jost. Already ten years ago, the automanager joined Skoda taken care of. In 2015 he moved to Wolfsburg to do the same job for the brand there… Continue reading Handelsblatt Auto Summit: Volkswagen announces the end of the internal combustion engine

More performance for the compact sports car: the new Audi TT can be ordered now

Sharper, more powerful and better equipped: Audi starts advance sales of the upgraded TT series today. 20 years after the series debut of the original TT, the compact sports car now has a tauter exterior design, more powerful engines and a wider range of standard equipment. The limited-edition “TT 20 years” anniversary model (combined fuel… Continue reading More performance for the compact sports car: the new Audi TT can be ordered now

Audi Sport drivers club: Exclusive customer program off to successful start

Audi Sport has already established the Audi Sport drivers club successfully in the German market. In 2019 the exclusive customer program for all R and RS model owners is moving into the next phase: Audi Sport is opening the club to additional markets while expanding the range of benefits to include a members-only Audi Sport… Continue reading Audi Sport drivers club: Exclusive customer program off to successful start

Audi decides on investment program for realignment

The Audi Group is accelerating its realignment with high investments in future-oriented topics. From 2019 until the end of 2023 alone, the company plans advance expenditure of approximately €14 billion in electric mobility, digitalization and autonomous driving. This includes investments in property, plant and equipment as well as research and development expenditure. Overall, the company’s… Continue reading Audi decides on investment program for realignment

SEAT and Snam partner to support the implementation of natural gas and renewable gas infrastructure, research and development projects

The strategic agreement aims at supporting the implementation of CNG and bio-CNG infrastructure and research and development projects
SEAT is the brand with the most comprehensive CNG vehicle lineup in Europe
Snam is a European leader in gas infrastructure and is developing new refuelling stations

MILAN, 27-Nov-2018 — /EuropaWire/ — SEAT President Luca de Meo and Snam CEO Marco Alverà today signed a strategic agreement in Milan to promote the use of compressed natural gas (CNG) and renewable gas (biomethane) for sustainable mobility, as well as joint research and development projects in this scope. SEAT and Snam share strategic markets such as Italy, France and Austria, which will enable the creation of synergies to boost CNG and bio-CNG as a clean and competitive alternative to traditional fuels.

Concluded within the framework of Snam’s Partners’ Day, the agreement provides that both companies explore business and commercial development opportunities aimed at corporate customers, dealers and consumers to promote the network of gas stations, as well as identify technological projects.

In addition, SEAT and Snam will collaborate in developing mobility services and creating new products, with the goal of offering added value to users of these kinds of vehicles. The strategic agreement, which could extend to other Volkswagen Group brands, also includes the technological development of biomethane, a renewable energy that helps reduce emissions even more.

SEAT President Luca de Meo highlighted that “the agreement with Snam enables us to take steps to democratising CNG. Italy is the leading market in the use of this energy and represents 55% of the sale of vehicles powered with this fuel in Europe this year. For SEAT, one out of every five vehicles sold in Italy uses CNG. With this agreement we aim to further enhance the development of compressed natural gas in Italy and export this success case to other countries.”

Snam CEO Marco Alverà said: “this partnership will strengthen the development of natural gas and biomethane-powered sustainable mobility, both in Italy and across Europe, combining Snam’s innovative infrastructure development, and SEAT’s expertise in rolling out new sustainable models. We believe that natural gas is the most immediate solution to improving air quality in our cities, in addition to having environmental sustainability, performance and economic advantages. The rapid spread of renewable gas has highlighted this. Sustainable mobility is one of the key areas of focus for our 200 million euro investment plan in energy transition businesses”.

CNG, a sustainable alternative

There is an upward trend in the use of compressed natural gas cars in Europe. Italy is the main market with a fleet of approximately 1 million vehicles and 1,300 refuelling stations. SEAT is committed to CNG as an efficient, profitable alternative. The brand currently offers compressed natural gas and petrol hybrid technology with the Mii, the Ibiza, the Leon and the Arona, the only CNG SUV in the world.

Snam has recently inaugurated its first L-CNG filling station in Pesaro, it has about 50 natural gas and biomethane refuelling plants currently in implementation and a pluriennal development plan of approximately 300 new distributors.

Driving with CNG emits 75% less nitrogen oxide compared to a diesel vehicle and 25% less CO2 than one that runs on petrol, and it does away with practically all particulate matter. Mobility with vehicular natural gas is considered environmentally friendly by the European Union, so the benefit of this kind of fuel includes the possibility of accessing European cities when there are traffic restrictions due to pollution. Besides contributing to the fight against climate change, natural gas also ensures significant economic advantages to consumers, as it enables savings of over 30% per kilometre compared to diesel and over 55% in the case of petrol.

SEAT is the only company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets cars in Spain. A member of the Volkswagen Group, the multinational has its headquarters in Martorell (Barcelona), exporting 80% of its vehicles, and is present in over 80 countries on all five continents. In 2017, SEAT obtained an after tax profit of 281 million euros, sold close to 470,000 cars and achieved a record turnover of more than 9.5 billion euros.

The SEAT Group employs more than 15,000 professionals and has three production centres – Barcelona, El Prat de Llobregat and Martorell, where it manufactures the highly successful Ibiza, Arona and Leon. Additionally, the company produces the Ateca and the Toledo in the Czech Republic, the Tarraco in Germany, the Alhambra in Portugal and the Mii in Slovakia.

The multinational has a Technical Centre, which operates as a knowledge hub that brings together 1,000 engineers who are focussed on developing innovation for Spain’s largest industrial investor in R&D. SEAT already features the latest connectivity technology in its vehicle range and is currently engaged in the company’s global digitalisation process to promote the mobility of the future.

Snam is Europe’s leading gas utility. Founded in 1941 as “Società Nazionale Metanodotti”, it has been building and managing sustainable and technologically advanced infrastructure guaranteeing energy security for over 75 years. Snam operates in Italy and, through subsidiaries, Austria (TAG and GCA), France (Teréga) and the United Kingdom (Interconnector UK). It is one of the main shareholders of TAP (Trans Adriatic Pipeline) and is the company most involved in projects for the creation of the Energy Union.

First in Europe by transport network size (over 32,500 km in Italy, about 40,000 with international subsidiaries) and natural gas storage capacity (16.7 billion cubic meters in Italy, about 20 billion with international subsidiaries), Snam manages the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant built in Italy and is a shareholder of the country’s main terminal.

Snam’s business model is based on sustainable growth, transparency, nurturing talent, and development of local areas by dialoguing with communities. It fosters sustainable mobility, expands into energy efficiency, and invests in biomethane and innovative technologies to increase the use of renewable gas, a key resource of the green economy.

SEAT Communications
Cristina Vall-Llosada
Head of Corporate Communications
T/ +34 93 708 53 78
M/ +34 646 295 296
cristina.vall-llosada@seat.es
http://seat-mediacenter.com

Snam Communications
Salvatore Ricco
Head of Communications
T/ +39 02 3703 9505
M/ +39 335 7709861
salvatore.ricco@snam.it
www.snam.it

SOURCE: Snam SPA

Volkswagen and Tesco to build UK’s biggest free car-charging network

Volkswagen
A Volkswagen car charging outside a Tesco supermarket.

German auto firm Volkswagen and U.K. grocer Tesco have teamed up to build the largest free electric car charging network in Britain.

The two firms announced Friday that over the next three years they will install nearly 2,500 charging points in the parking lots of up to 600 Tesco stores across the United Kingdom.

Volkswagen U.K. board member Mike Orford told CNBC by phone that his company wants to encourage people towards electric vehicle ownership by removing anxieties about when and where a car can be charged.

“People that live in a flat who might want an electric car can't charge at home as they have to park in the street. If they say, 'Actually, I know I go to Tesco twice a week for a shop,' then this suddenly feels quite viable,” he said.

Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) have revealed that more than 120,000 'alternatively fueled vehicles' have been registered in the U.K. in 2018 — a 22 per cent increase on the same period last year.

Installed by the charging network operator Pod Point, customers at larger Tesco sites will be able to choose between a free 7-kilowatt (kw) charger or a pay-as-you go rapid charge 50 kw option.

Orford said people wouldn't need to be a Tesco customer to make use of the charge points, but the parking bays would be monitored in the same way as disabled or “mother and baby” spots.

Volkswagen hopes the use of the bays, which should be compatible with most makes of electric cars, will become habitual to shoppers.

“It is a bit like plugging in your mobile phone, most of us don't wait until the battery is flat,” Orford said, before adding, “People can get a quick 10-minute charge while just buying a pint of milk.”

The cost is being borne by both Volkswagen and Tesco, but beyond stating that it is a “multi-million pound” initiative, neither company is revealing the expected outlay.

Volkswagen Group has said its VW brand should sell a million electric cars a year by 2025. The auto group announced earlier this month it would spend almost 44 billion euros ($50 billion) on developing electric cars, autonomous driving and new mobility services by 2023.

On Wednesday, Volkswagen confirmed it is deciding where to locate a new factory in North America to build electric vehicles for the U.S. market.

Clarification: This story has been updated to reflect that the charging points will be in the parking lots of up to 600 Tesco stores.

WATCH: A visit to the only Tesla Supercharger station with a lounge

CNBC visits the only Telsa Supercharger station with a lounge
8:59 AM ET Sat, 27 Jan 2018 | 02:20

ChargePoint raises $240 million to expand charging-station network

2014 BMW i3 REx fast-charging at Chargepoint site, June 2016 [photo: Tom Moloughney]
ChargePoint, the largest network of electric car charging stations, announced last Wednesday that it has raised $240 million to become even bigger.

The investment comes at a pivotal moment after ChargePoint CEO Pasquale Romano in September announced an ambitious goal to build enough chargers to juice up 2.5 million electric cars worldwide.

The latest investment, along with that goal, should help keep ChargePoint competitive with other rapidly growing charging networks in the U.S. and Europe.

DON'T MISS: ChargePoint commits to build charging stations for 2.5 million cars by 2025

Although ChargePoint is the largest and one of the oldest electric-car charging networks, the competition is coming on strong. Under a court mandate to settle charges over diesel emissions cheating, Volkswagen is setting up the Electrify America network to rival Tesla's Superchargers across the U.S. It is building Phase One of its planned rollout with 484 public charging locations consisting of 2,000 chargers, most of them DC fast chargers, and is planning the rollout of Phase 2, starting next year.

In Europe, ChargePoint's next big market, major automakers BMW, Daimler, Ford, and the Volkswagen Group have banded together to build the Ionity network of fast chargers around the continent.

READ MORE: ChargePoint users can now access networks in Canada, Europe

Other long-time competitors such as EVgo are also expanding, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced this month that the company will double the size of its Supercharger network next year.

ChargePoint's latest investment—it's seventh round for anyone counting—comes from electric utility American Electric Power, Chevron, Daimler trucks and buses, BMW, and Siemens and energy investment fund Quantum Energy (the lead investor).

CHECK OUT: Musk announces more and faster Tesla Superchargers on the way

One of ChargePoint's strategies is to focus on building high powered charge points for trucks and buses, including municipal bus fleets, a market where there isn't as much competition.

At the same time, the company plans to continue to build more chargers for cars if it intends to keep the commitment it made at California Governor Jerry Brown's Global Climate Action Summit in September.

“We are at a tipping point in the generational shift to transportation electrification,” says ChargePoint President and CEO Pasquale Romano. “Leading investors from automotive, utilities, oil and gas, and financial institutions are coming together to support ChargePoint’s vision of an all-electric future as the mass adoption of electric mobility and the transition to electric fleets accelerate.”