FCA teams up for e-mobility

17 June 2019

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) has signed partnerships with Enel X and ENGIE to expand its e-mobility solutions.

The partnerships will focus on expanding the carmaker’s electric vehicle (EV) range across Europe, as well as supporting the production and distribution of PHEV and BEV models as part of the group’s 2018-2022 plan.

ENGIE will operate across 14 EU markets and will heavily rely upon ENGIE subsidiary ENGIE Eps. The subsidiary specialises in energy storage and has previously collaborated with FCA to create EVBox, a producer of charging stations.

′We are assembling an eco-system of partners, products and services across multiple markets to meet and exceed the rapidly evolving expectations of our customers for electrified vehicles,’ FCA CEO Mike Manley said.

The Italian Job

FCA’s partnership with Enel X will focus on the Italian, Spanish and Portuguese markets. Specifically, the partnership will aim to install 700 charging stations at its Italian plants, offices and R&D centres.

Italy is currently lagging behind most of its European counterparts when it comes to EV adoption. With just a 0.2% BEV market share in Q1 2019, according to ACEA data, the country has major ground to cover to catch up.

Italy currently has just 3,800 charging stations according to the European Alternative Fuels Observatory (EAFO) – the lowest across the EU5 – meaning the 700 to be added by FCA alone will increase the total number of charging points by about 20% by 2021.

By making these stations easily accessible to employees, FCA is encouraging rapid EV adoption. By investing in infrastructure in a market where EVs have historically struggled it is showing the importance of laying the foundations prior to mass adoption.

Failed partnership

While FCA’s partnership is a step towards more sophisticated mobility, had its merger with Renault not failed it would have had access to the French carmaker’s mobility partnerships.

Early last month, Renault announced a partnership with French shopping centre operator Klépierre in an attempt to provide more charging stations, electric vehicles and a car-sharing service.

′Thanks to partnerships like the one we are forging with Klépierre today, we are pursuing our strategy of going beyond simple vehicles to offer a form of mobility that is easy to live with, accessible and sustainable and which heralds tomorrow’s mobility,’ stated Gilles Normand, Senior Vice President, Electric Vehicles of Groupe Renault.

On top of the charging partnership, Renault also has ties to the University of Paris-Saclay with the Paris-Saclay Autonomous Lab. The partnership aims to research and develop more advanced mobility services.