BMW UK welcomed the UK Government's announcement yesterday of £500 million in additional funding to accelerate the shift to Ultra Low Emission Vehicles (ULEVs)

BMW UK welcomed the UK Government’s announcement yesterday of £500 million in additional funding between 2015 and 2020 to accelerate the shift to Ultra Low Emission Vehicles (ULEVs).

The wide-ranging package of measures includes the continuation of the existing subsidy until at least 2017 for customers purchasing new fully electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles. Investment has also been earmarked for the creation of a network of rapid chargepoints for electric vehicles in the UK.

BMW UK Managing Director, Tim Abbott said “The UK Government’s commitment to supporting the transition to lower-emission vehicles comes at a crucial phase in the development of the electric car market.

“The Government’s funding commitment provides certainty that the UK is serious about embracing these new technologies and complements the very substantial investments being made by industry to introduce innovative lower-emission technologies that are not only exciting for customers but also good for the environment,” said Mr Abbott.

“The development of rapid charging infrastructure, together with the continuation of the Plug in Car Grant, is particularly important in giving potential electric vehicle owners the additional confidence some of them might need to make the switch” he said.

Since its launch in November last year, BMW already has a strong bank of well over 1,000 sales and confirmed orders for its revolutionary, fully-electric BMW i3 model. The BMW i3 has also won critical acclaim from the media, being named 2014 World Green Car of the Year as well as 2014 UK Car of the Year among many other industry and consumer accolades.

The BMW i3 is the first model to launch within the BMW i range. Two BMW i cars are confirmed for production, the fully-electric BMW i3 megacity vehicle and the plug-in hybrid BMW i8 sports car. The BMW i3 is BMW’s first fully-electric production car and is priced from £369 a month* or £25,680** OTR. First deliveries of the BMW i3 were made to customers in the UK in February 2014, meanwhile the BMW i8 will go on sale in the UK in July 2014 priced at £99,845 OTR, with 2014 production having already sold out in the UK.