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• Bosch Automotive investment in vehicle battery technology to bring another boost for hybrid, electric car owners
Dubai, UAE: The drive by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority to introduce electric vehicle charging stations across the Emirate has been hailed as an eco-friendly milestone in the Middle East by Bosch Automotive, which is making a major investment in car battery technology.
DEWA launched its first 16 public charging stations for electric and hybrid vehicles last month and plans to roll out another 84 by the end of this year.
“This is a significant milestone in eco-friendly development, not just for the UAE, but the region as a whole,” said Andreas Bodemer, Vice President of Bosch Automotive Aftermarket Middle East and Africa.
“Dubai has been a leader in many areas with initiatives that impact positively on people's lives, and DEWA's lead on vehicle charging stations can pave the way for electric and hybrid cars to be a much more common sight on roads in the Emirates and around the region.”
“We're committed to playing a role in this process by investing in the delivery of state-of-the-art reliable technology in electromobility. Developing a high-voltage vehicle battery that is cost-efficient, powerful, and reliable at the same time is our ecological holy grail.
In a joint venture called Lithium Energy and Power, Bosch Automotive has joined forces with GS Yuasa and Mitsubishi Corporation to make lithium-ion batteries up to two times more powerful, cutting charging time and adding to battery life.
“This will dramatically reduce the amount of time that growing numbers of electric and hybrid car owners will eventually spend at charging stations, and of course reduce costs with batteries that last much longer,” said Bodemer.
“It's a particularly important step for the local market where manufacturers like BMW, Renault, Lexus and Nissan all have electric and hybrid vehicles currently available, and many more will follow suit as more motorists switch to eco-friendly cars.”
Complementing the DEWA initiative, Bosch already provides the UAE market with an increasingly wide range of batteries for the latest hybrid and electrical cars models.
The latest Bosch lithium-ion batteries are designed to run for at least 150,000 kilometers and to last up to 15 years while still possessing 80 per cent of the battery's original storage capacity and performance.
DEWA's move to introduce charging stations is part of the Smart Dubai strategic plan to transform Dubai into the smartest city in the world, with six key thrusts: smart life, smart transportation, smart society, smart economy, smart governance and smart environment.
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