OREANDA-NEWS. Guests at The Peninsula Shanghai can now experience the excitement of the BMW i8 for themselves after the five-star hotel added the award winning, innovative sports car to its fleet. This is a further step in the BMW Group’s strategy to encourage sustainable mobility and is being fully supported by The Peninsula, Shanghai which has installed public charging stations compatible with all electric cars standardized for China.

The move is part of the BMW Group’s efforts actively to promote electric mobility in China and comes after the company handed over a BMW i3 to the Kempinski Hotel Beijing last year. The BMW Group also encourages the construction of public charging networks in China by working with major Chinese state and local enterprises such as the State Grid, Shanghai Electric Power, Expo Shanghai Group, Vanke Group and Swire Group. Private customers are also being assisted to make the change to electric driving, as free BMW i wall-boxes, including installation, are being offered to the first BMW i customers. BMW i authorized dealers are obliged to make sure all BMW i customers have adequate access to a charging point.

Since its launch in June 2014, the BMW i8 has proved to be a highly sought-after vehicle with well over 4,000 delivered to customers worldwide. It is the world’s most sustainable sports car and the first plug-in hybrid from the BMW Group.

Rolls-Royce, BMW and MINI vehicles are used as limousine service cars at each of The Peninsula Hotels worldwide; the addition of BMW i to the line-up underlines the continuing successful partnership between BMW Group and the luxury hotel group.

The BMW Group

With its three brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 30 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2014, the BMW Group sold approximately 2,118 million cars and 123,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax for the financial year 2014 was approximately € 8.71 billion on revenues amounting to € 80.40 billion. As of 31 December 2014, the BMW Group had a workforce of 116,324 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.