Last week, we reported that some of the DC fast chargers installed at BMW Malaysia’s dealerships had begun operating on a pay-per-use basis, with different rates to be found at the various locations mentioned in our story.
It was also revealed by BMW Malaysia that while not all its dealers have begun implementing such a policy, the entire network would eventually move towards making payment compulsory, with a standardised rate being applied across all dealerships.
That rate has now been ascertained. In a document sighted by this publication, the charging cost for the BMW DC network looks to have been set, with prices being determined relative to the charging output capability of the DC charger.
There are six price segments, listing DC outputs from 30 kW to 180 kW, and rates differ for BMW EV customers and non-BMW EV owners, given that the DCFC network is open for public usage. For non-BMW EV owners, the rates are:
- DC 30 kW charger – RM0.60 sen per minute of use
- DC 50 kW charger – RM1.00/min
- DC 60 kW charger – RM1.40/min
- DC 90 kW charger – RM1.80/min
- DC 120 kW charger – RM2.40/min
- DC 180 kW charger – RM3.60/min
As for BMW customers, the rates are:
- DC 30 kW charger – RM0.40 sen per minute of use
- DC 50 kW charger – RM0.80 sen/min
- DC 60 kW charger – RM1.00/min
- DC 90 kW charger – RM1.40/min
- DC 120 kW charger – RM2.00/min
- DC 180 kW charger – RM2.80/min
Cost-wise, use of a 30 kW charger such as the unit in Seong Hoe Premium Motors in Melaka will amount to RM36 per hour for a non-BMW owner, while for BMW owners it will cost RM24 for the same period. Things ramp up as the output climbs – at 120 kW and 180 kW outputs, the rate for non-BMW owners is RM144 and RM216 per hour of use, respectively, while BMW owners will be paying RM120 and RM168 respectively for the same period of use.
The per hour rate is not fully representative of actual price, because it’ll naturally take longer to charge using a slower charger, say 30 or 50 kW compared to a faster one. For example, the BMW iX will take 60 minutes to charge from 20-80% SoC with a 50 kW charger, which in this case will cost RM48. Using a 180 kW charger will only take around 20 minutes to get the same juice, which will cost RM56.
The 120 kW rate is already being applied over at Tian Siang Premium Auto Ipoh. Last week, a non-BMW user reported the rate of RM2.40 per minute of use for non-BMW owners, and that it took about 45 minutes to top up his vehicle from 56% to 100%, costing him RM108 in the process. Meanwhile, at Auto Bavaria Ara Damansara, the 180 kW charger is configured to 90 kW, and so the charged rate of RM1.40 per minute for BMW owners as listed last week looks like it is being adhered to.
At the highest end, the rate remains slightly cheaper than that of the Shell Recharge HPC network, which in its pay-per-use format has a RM4 confirmation fee and RM20 for every five minutes of charging for the first 25 minutes, and RM20 for every five minute block thereafter, which works out to RM240 an hour (or RM244 with confirmation fee included).
It is however not known when the standardised pricing will be applied, nor has the charge point operator (CPO) and relevant payment/booking app been determined – the field for the latter in the document simply lists these as “to be confirmed.” As we understand, the BMW DCFCs are supposed to be run under the ChargEV network, but things seem to have gone quiet of late on this front.
The document adds that the recommended preferential rate for BMW customers (of approximately 20% off) is to be decided by dealers. It also recommends that all dealers follow the same rates to ensure consistency. What do you think of the charging costs of the BMW DC charging network? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section.
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If they charge by the minute, the smart thing to do is to stop charging at 80% because even though you are connected to a fast charger, the charging rate drops as your battery gets filled hence going from 80% to full will take a very long time.
Charge to 80% and top up when you get home.
First they say enviromental friendly
second they say it’s innovative, intelligent
third they say the car look cooll
once the bills coming in, “fak this” biggrin.gif
And the battery can’t be recycled. Hahaha so funny.
Let the ev fools the rich n syiok sendiri
Seems like charging is more expensive than pumping petrol
More expensive and slower. Hmmm…
what is the price per km for ev?
for petrol engine..it cost around 15cents/km
EV 12Sen/KM (around RM40.00 per full charge at home 70kW)
12sen/KM if you charge at home and also TNB keeps the electricy price unchanged for a foreseeable future. But, if you start to charge outside home, the equation will change and it changes very quickly!
there’s a different rate once you reach certain amount of usage. for example, 1-200 kwh cost around 20sen/kwh, after that its 30sen, then after 400kwh its 50sen/kwh. try calculate back the rate if it reach 50sen/kwh.
What cost would you put to the pollution of CO2 by your car? And what cost if the subsidy is reduced and petrol price is rm4/liter?
sohai…what if…tnb raised electricity rate?
where do u think electric generated from?
do u know the cost & environmental impact to mine material, produce and dispose the battery?
this is a shift from fuel intensive to material intensive energy.
go read volvo and toyota studies on ev environment impact…ev might be the future, but it not all white & green as u think, for now.
Point taken. But I still think we do what we can by reducing our own carbon foot print, and you let TNB worry about their own emission. otherwise, everyone is just looking for excuses.
So it’s more expensive to charge up an electric car than fill up my pick up truck?
Who the duck want charge and pay so much of this shethole… better use fuel… idiots!!!
So to pump electricity is about the same cost as pumping petrol?
For the Non BMW user, it cost him 108RM to pump in 22.5kW from 56% to 100%, which overly simplified, his battery pack is about 52kW. Puts it smack in the middle of something similar sized to the Leaf’s 40-62kWh or the Ioniq 5’s 58kWh battery pack.
So in petrol terms, a half tank of a midsize car like the leaf or ioniq wont cost more than 100RM to fill up.
Perhaps my calculations are off, and I’m all for EV, but at this time…does not make financial sense.
They have the right to charge whatever price they want as I have d right to choose to do 95% or most of my charging at home on solar power as I have been doing for a long time already.
but that would require additional costs like batteries and solar panels to save up the extra juice. Heard that currently the batteries are not very reliable.
Lots of negativity about this post, but it’s important to remember that DC Fast Charging should never be your first option if you’re driving an EV. If you use a Level-2 charger at home, the cost is much lower. DCFC is an option if you’re travelling across states. I probably travel across states maybe 1x a quarter, so the DCFC cost is quite acceptable.
Precisely the point! DC fast chargers are meant for occasional convenience or emergency recharge and should never be the daily option for EV users. Of course you are expected to pay a premium for that.
Ie, a bottle of 1.5L mineral water costs RM 3.00+ at the petrol station / 7E just because it’s convenient for you, and costs practically nothing at home. Ask yourself, do you buy water at the petrol station every single day? Same logic here. Highest tier of domestic TNB tariff is RM 0.57/kwh. Let’s say BMW iX has a 45kw battery, that’s less than RM 30 for a full charge at home. With approximately 400km per full charge, that’s effectively only RM 0.075 per KM. Make some sense, keyboard warriors.
What about people lives in apartment and condominion. If the price of charging is hight them EV is not an option for them. Nowdays more and more people lives in apartment and condominion in Klang vallay due to land constrain
bye-bye EV.
true face of the proponent of EV has been revealed. with existing logistics (transmission of power to station) still the player intends to make quick buck. In comparison with complicated logistics of fossil fuel, EV ops should cost way lower.
Cue out of service, under maintenance signs for high powered chargers as maintenance for these won’t be cheap also
the EV enthusiast thinks electricity is free lol.
EV battery tech, charging tech, range can improve three fold (lighter, smaller batteries, 5 minutes charge, cheaper than petrol to charge, 1,500km range, etc) and some people will still find a reason never to buy one.
It has become almost semi religious/political in entrenched views when it comes to EV. Just like some people prefer mechanical watches, that’s all good. Live and let live.
The price difference between owner and non owner should be larger
Just pump rm2.05/l, peace of mind
RM3 is coming, enjoy RM2.05 while we can..
This really defeat the purpose of owning an electric car. Even Tesla won’t charge as much. (Correct me if I’m mistaken)
I don’t have time to ‘lepak’2 while charging. Will stay for ICE for this decade.
unless petrol prices go haywire. pass.
Including the time wasted waiting during charging, it is much more expensive than fuel. Environment friendly??? Bullshit because our country’s electricity is mostly generated from fuel burning too. EV at this moment is still for the rich and those who have lots of time to goyang kaki.
No thanks. I will stick with my ICE for years to come. It is an another scam to bait people’ pocket. And EV lithium ion short-circuit may trigger unstoppable fire and burn your house and terraced neigbout.
Just fork out the money so that no need to hear Greta scream “How Dare You”
All these more costly and more time used to charge compared to petrol is only acceptable by people when we run out of petrol lol
It does cost more than regular petrol/diesel. Also, electric vehicles aren’t as speedy as regular engine cars, but they are the best mobility solution we have so far – to save the environment and improve Malaysia’s public electric infrastructure. It’s the price all of us have to pay for future generations. But it doesn’t mean that EVs won’t stop innovating. In regards to the battery not being efficient, I’m sure the automobile industry are looking for more solutions – e.g. by bringing us lithium-ion batteries (one that I am aware of). But we also have to look at the market trends for EV. As of now, it may be expensive, but in the future – you might be an EV owner too. It’s just that Malaysia takes a while to take advantage of this exciting movement.