BMW Group and Daimler Mobility's joint venture Digital Charging Solutions GmbH soon will be strengthened by a third shareholder - BP, which will invest an undisclosed amount to acquire a 33.3% share in the DCS.

The DCS, initially launched by BMW and then joined by Daimler (50/50), is a developer of digital charging solutions (software) for automotive manufacturers (in-car software integration) and vehicle fleet operators.

The company already offers access to 228,000 charging points in 32 countries, providing charging services such as “Mercedes me Charge”, “BMW Charging” and “MINI Charging”, as well as for other OEMs.

"DCS’s services are important for the electrification strategies of the automotive industry. The company works with OEMs to integrate its charging solutions into vehicle operating systems.

The BMW Group and Daimler Mobility AG operate mobility services under the umbrella of the YOUR NOW Joint Ventures. Digital Charging Solutions GmbH stands behind the CHARGE NOW brand and operates charging services such as “Mercedes me Charge”, “BMW Charging” and “MINI Charging”.

DCS already offers access to 228,000 charging points in 32 countries giving OEMs, fleet customers and EV drivers extensive access to charging infrastructure across Europe."

With BP on-board, the DCS will be able to provide access to an additional 8,700 charging points across Europe, including ultra-fast charging, as well as "fuel and charge" for fleet customers (all refueling/recharging points in a single system).

BP said that by the end of this year, it plans to add 250 ultra-fast chargers (150 kW or more) at its retail sites in the UK, as well as 500 ultra-fast charging points across its retail sites in Germany (see partnership with Volkswagen).

By 2030, the number of BP charging points will increase to 70,000 globally.

"Electrification is at the heart of bp‘s convenience and mobility strategy and the company aims to grow its network of public EV charging points by 2030 to over 70,000 worldwide. They currently have around 8,700 charging points in Europe and its UK network bp pulse is already the most used EV charging network in the UK1."

"DCS customers will gain access to these additional charging points and bp will gain access to a wider customer base."

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