Volkswagen is developing its own charging service to coincide with the market launch of its all EV ID. range.
“With We Charge, customers will be able to charge their electric vehicles at over 150,000 public charging points all over Europe,” the automaker claimed in a statement.
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A charging card will provide access to charging points and three individual tariffs, such as exclusive conditions for the IONITY high power charging network.
The service can be booked and used from mid-August.
“Volkswagen is thus rounding off its charging ecosystem which makes charging electric vehicles as convenient as possible,” the automaker added.
“As e-mobility increasingly takes to the road, public charging is becoming ever more important. With We Charge, Volkswagen is offering customers the right solution for swift, hassle free travel in Germany and Europe – electric, eco-friendly and above all, convenient,” claimed VW digital charging services chief Richard van Tatenhove.
Charging tariffs are tailored for different users. The basic tariff – We Charge Free – does not have a monthly fee and essentially provides access to charging via a single charging card – best suited to drivers who only rarely use public charging points.
We Charge Go offers lower prices for individual charging and is recommended for regular users of public charging points.
We Charge Plus is for frequent drivers who will pay EUR0.30 per kilowatt hour for IONITY in Germany and can therefore use the pan-European high-power charging network at what VW claims is “a very attractive price”.
We Charge offers various functions which can be used via the an app.
Users can locate available We Charge charging points and the app also provides charging prices and charging point availability.
The app later will include an option to only show charging points that operate on ‘green’ power.
Intelligent route guidance accounts for available charging points as well as the chosen charging strategy.
We Charge also gives users of the ID. Charger Connect/Pro, VW’s smart wallbox for home charging, access to additional online services such as charging statistics, access management or remote control.
Electric cars can be run emission-free with certified Volkswagen Naturstrom generated from renewable energy sources.
All of these products and services are developed by VW subsidiary Elli.
Through IONITY, VW is also involved in building up a network of high power charging stations across Europe (charging capacity of up to 350kW).
There are currently 250 IONITY charging parks in operation in 20 countries with a further 50 under construction and plans for 400.
