In an effort to build out the U.S. electric vehicle (EV) refueling infrastructure, Nissan and BMW say they are opening public fast-charging stations at 120 locations across 19 states. The locations will offer a dual-port 50 kW fast-charging station with both CHAdeMO and SAE Combo connectors. The stations will be able to serve owners of the two companies' EVs—the Nissan LEAF and BMW i3—and other EV drivers whose vehicles are equipped with quick-charge ports that meet those two standards. According to the companies, the 50 kW stations can charge EVs to 80 percent capacity in about 20-30 minutes. They say that is faster than the time needed to recharge at a Level 2 (240V) charger, currently one of the most commonly available public charging stations.

Charging stations will offer a dual-port 50 kW fast-charging station with both CHAdeMO and SAE Combo connectors. According to Andrew Speaker, Nissan’s director of electric vehicle sales and marketing, the quick chargers are being installed at corporate workplaces, dealerships and other locations. Drivers can locate the chargers with ConnectedDrive in the BMW i3—either using the in-vehicle navigation or by using the BMW i Remote app—or via the Nissan EZ-Charge smartphone app. The chargers are also compatible with Nissan EZ-Charge cards.

The newest version of Nissan's LEAF has a range of 107 miles on a full charge. The BMW i3 has a range of 80-100 miles. On the 80% charge that is the typical "topping off" point at fast-charging stations (re-charging rates drop rapidly as a battery pack’s state of charge rises beyond that level) the ranges for each vehicle are less.