BMW, Ford, and Honda Establish New Company 'ChargeScape

BMW Group, Ford Motor Company and American Honda Motor Company announce the formation of ChargeScape, LLC, an equally-owned company，focused on creating a single, cost-effective platform that connects electric vehicles, automakers and the public grid to unlock new value for North American electric vehicle owners.

The trend towards electrification has had a domino effect across North America, starting with Ford announcing its adoption of Tesla's NACS charging standard, followed by General Motors and nearly every other company. Subsequently, at the end of July, seven of the world's largest automakers, including BMW and Honda, announced an alliance to build a clean energy fast charging network consisting of more than 30,000 new charging piles in North America. While many of these companies remain competitors, they are trying to join forces to address some of the barriers to electric vehicle adoption, such as the lack of charging stations and common standards, the strength of the grid, and a common platform for power companies and electric vehicles to communicate with each other.

In addition, BMW, Ford and Honda said ChargeScape will provide more electricity to EV owners who charge at home, including earning financial benefits by charging during off-peak hours. Even better, vehicle-to-grid (V2G) capabilities will eventually allow these EV owners to send energy stored in their vehicle’s batteries directly back to the grid, curbing peak demand.

Finally,ChargeScape hopes to further collaborate on the future of OVGIP. Ford, BMW and Honda have publicly invited all other automakers to join the company to help accelerate and unlock its full potential.