Kia UK has introduced a new IONITY bolt-on to its Kia Charge service, opening the door to low-cost high-power charging for Kia EV owners.
Kia Charge provides comprehensive access to the UK public charging network, with around 17,000 connectors accessible from a single account. The new bolt-on enables Kia EV owners to access IONITY’s high-speed 350kW charging points across the UK and Europe.
Discounted ultra-fast charging for Kia Charge users – just £0.25 per kWh
Available to Kia Charge users on either of the two tariffs offered (see tariff details below), the bolt-on costs £11.25 per month. Thanks to Kia’s partnership with IONITY, this allows Kia Charge users to enjoy heavily discounted rapid charging on the IONITY network. The bolt-on reduces the standard charging rate from £0.70 per kWh by 64 per cent, to £0.25 per kWh. It also eliminates the £0.49 session fee.
Recharging a 64kWh e-Niro or Soul from 10-to-80 per cent via an IONITY connector therefore costs just £11.20, compared to £31.85 without the bolt-on – a saving of more than £20. The £11.25-per-month bolt-on therefore pays for itself in a single charge.
Furthermore, the Kia EV6 due to launch later this year will be the first Kia to offer 800V ultra-fast charging. This technology enables the car’s battery to recharge from 10-to-80 per cent in just 18 minutes (and for just £13.55) when plugged in to IONITY’s ultra-fast charging network.
The new bolt-on also enables users to access IONITY’s 400 high-power charging points across 24 European countries with similar discounted charging rates, facilitating low-cost rapid-charging on cross-continental drives.
Access to 17,000 UK charging points from a single account
Kia Charge is a UK-wide integrated public charging service, designed to give drivers easier access to public vehicle charging. It gives owners of the brand’s EVs and PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) comprehensive access to around 17,000 charge points across the UK – around 68 per cent of the public charging network – from a single account.
Kia Charge provides access to several major charging networks, including bp pulse, Pod Point, IONITY, Source London, Instavolt, Shell NewMotion, Osprey, Char-gy, and ESB. Several other networks, including certain regional services, are also available. Being able to access these networks via a single platform negates the need for drivers to sign up to separate accounts with multiple charging point operators.
Once signed up, Kia EV and PHEV owners can start a charge via the Kia Charge smartphone app or radio-frequency identification (RFID) card. Instead of numerous individual transactions, payments are made via a single itemised monthly invoice.
Kia Charge offers a choice of two fully flexible tariffs for all customers: ‘Easy’ and ‘Plus’:
- ‘Easy’:
- Ideal for light users
- One-off £1.99 charge to access the service and obtain RFID card
- No monthly subscription, £0.49 ‘session fee’ on most chargers (excluding bp pulse and Pod Point)
- Users charged per kWh
- ‘Plus’:
- Ideal for those who rely more heavily on public charging
- £2.99 monthly tariff, with no up-front charge or session fees
- Users charged per kWh, but with 15 per cent discount per kWh from most networks (except bp pulse, Pod Point and IONITY)
Every user can also add a bp pulse bolt-on subscription to their Kia Charge account, costing an additional £7.85 per month. This subscription provides users with a discount of up to 40 per cent when charging within the bp pulse network, compared to the ‘instant’ charging rate.
