Kia only charges with green electricity now.

Simultaneously with its sister company Hyundai, Kia has also started the switch to green electricity for its charging service. So far, this has already been the case at the ultra-fast charging stations of the provider and joint venture partner Ionity, according to the manufacturer. In the future, the amount of electricity drawn at the other over 300,000 charging points available to customers Europe-wide via the Kia Charge service will also be fully offset by sustainably generated electricity. These are accessible through the network of Kia’s charging partner Digital Charging Solutions (DCS). For the compensation, the overall amount of electricity will be determined in compliance with data protection regulations, and the corresponding amount of GO certificates ("Guarantee of Origin") will be purchased to ensure the source from emission-free renewable sources. The manufacturer relies on wind energy for this.

“By using GO certificates, we guarantee that the energy consumed during each charging process is fed back into the grid in the form of electricity from European wind farms. This makes the demand for green electricity visible in the market," says Jörg Reimann, CEO of Digital Charging Solutions.

Since the DCS network includes charging stations from many different operators, it is not possible to guarantee that exclusively green electricity is used at each individual station. However, with this initiative together with DCS, efforts are being made to increase the amount of electricity from renewable sources available in the network.

“By ensuring that more green electricity is fed into the grid, we can improve the energy mix in favor of sustainable sources," says Jason Jeong, President of Kia Europe.

He aims to eventually become part of a larger network that works directly with renewable energy suppliers to offer customers 100 percent green charging options. However, even with this measure, a big step is currently being taken.

Faster Charging: An EV6 goes from 10 to 80 percent in 18 minutes

Kia is involved in the joint venture Ionity through its parent company, Hyundai Motor Group, with access to more than 1,600 high-power charging points in 24 European countries. At the 350 kW charging stations, the Kia EV6 crossover can be charged from 10 to 80 percent in just 18 minutes. Kia Charge is currently available in the following 16 European countries: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Finland, France, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Austria, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovakia, and Spain. In Germany, Kia Charge customers currently have access to 7,051 direct current charging points, including almost 4,000 with more than 100 kW power, and to 47,972 alternating current charging points. This corresponds to 100 percent coverage of public direct current charging points and 99 percent for alternating current charging points, advertises the manufacturer. Customers can choose between the "Easy" and "Advanced" tariffs and various option packages for more affordable use of the ultra-fast Ionity charging points.