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BMW Group South Africa is no stranger to pioneering alternative forms of green energy. Last year the company unveiled its partnership with Bio2Watt, the methane-from-cow-dung facility that currently supplies 35% of energy requirements at BMW’s local vehicle production plant in Rosslyn north of Pretoria.
Now the company is forging ahead with another clean energy solution, solar power. It’s a free energy source that will power BMW’s i3 electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles or even domestic appliances.
South Africa, with its abundance of sun, should be a pioneer of this technology, says Tim Abbott, CEO of BMW Group South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.
“We should lead the revolution in terms of solar power because it has not been taken up around the world. So we are going to set the course.”
Kick-starting that solar revolution locally has seen BMW Group South Africa rolling out its i solar carport in sunny SA, the first vehicle manufacturer to offer this unique charging product.
The solar carport concept to charge electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles was revealed in Los Angeles in 2014, but SA will be the first country to bring it to market from July 2016.
Unique charging solution
Constructed predominantly from bamboo because of the material’s renewability and strength factors, the BMW i solar carport with its bamboo struts, stainless steel meshing and see-through glass solar panels takes its design cues from BMW’s i branded vehicles, the i3 electric and i8 plug-in hybrid sports car.
The carport, which takes just days to construct, supplies an average of 3.6kW of solar power (at peak times on a clear sunny day) straight to the BMW i Wallbox that is used to charge electric and plug-in hybrid BMW models.
The current i3 battery capacity of 19 kilowatt hours (kWh) provides a range of around 150km. In a 12-hour cycle, the sun (at this time of year) will produce 14.3kWh providing a range of 120km. In summer that will increase to 20kWh.
By installing a static storage system (batteries), solar energy can be stored for charging when there is no sun, or surplus energy could be used for other utilities.
Not only does this smart charging product reduce the cost of electro-mobility, it is another solution to charging dilemmas for e-vehicles.
Lack of charging infrastructure to support electric vehicles (EVs) together with a reliance on an unstable electricity grid has meant that range-anxious South Africans have yet to adopt e-mobility with any enthusiasm.
Other than charging units at BMW’s 19 i-dealers (26 by year-end) and the few public charging areas that BMW and Nissan have built to support their EVs, EV owners are mostly reliant on electricity to charge their vehicles from home.
Increased charging units, together with the solar carport and this charging system that can be integrated with home management systems to make customers fully self-sufficient, will increase consumer confidence in the viability of electric vehicles.
Abbott says they are still working hard to get government to accept that charging infrastructure is needed if electric mobility is to come to the streets. “There is a willingness but then of course there is the cost,” he adds.
Cost, though, does not appear to be deterring big business, with Abbott saying that major supermarket chain Pick n Pay is considering installing a charging post at every branch throughout the country.
And he says they are discussing with Telkom the use of solar panels at its sub-stations with a charging point for EVs.
“Solar power is starting to resonate with business and consumers. Technology is moving at such a pace and we are now seeing a definite move towards solar. And it is becoming much more affordable. A few years ago the payback for solar was probably around 12 to 15 years. Now it’s more like seven years,” says Abbott.
The solar carport, which is produced by photovoltaic solar system designer and installer Sunworks, would be a substantial investment for domestic users, a cost that Abbott is not yet willing to quantify.
“This is a pilot and we are still finding our way. There may be materials we don’t need to use or we may need to strengthen it,” he says.
But it turns out there is a more affordable solution for domestic users. Aside from the unique carport offering, BMW will also offer a system where the hardware used in the solar carport can be implemented or incorporated into a solar system that households or businesses might already have.
“In reality, some people won’t be able to construct this at home so they may put the solar panels on their roof or garage that can feed down [to BMW’s home charging unit the i Wallbox],” says Abbott.
Apart from the carport unveiled in Midrand on 20 May, in the coming months BMW Group SA says it will expand the installation of the solar carport in major city centres like Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban for public charging.
“It’s about showcasing the technology in high-visibility areas,” he adds.
Solar power is a clean and sustainable source of energy and because it is free, it is also cost-effective.
The bigger picture of course is that of solar energy being used for charging. But if you happen to be an owner of a BMW plug-in hybrid or i3 EV, there may be good reason to park your car in the sun.
This article originally appeared in the 2 June 2016 edition of finweek. Buy and download the magazine here.
