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Mercedes-Benz has revealed the Vision EQXX concept, an electric saloon with the capability to cover 620 miles on a single charge in real world driving.

The car achieves its impressive efficiency through a combination of aerodynamics and the use of lightweight materials.

It uses a 100kWh battery, which is ultra-compact, with a footprint that is 50% smaller and 30% lighter than the 107.8kWh pack used in the Mercedes EQS.

The EQXX is capable of achieving an efficiency figure of 6.2 miles/kWh, double that of the EQS.

“Electric range sounds easy but is a complex technical challenge. The easiest way is to put a bigger battery in the car. However, this leads to diminishing returns due to size and weight. This is definitely not the smartest route and it’s also not the best use of scarce resources.

“With the Vision EQXX, we’re presenting the results of an extraordinary challenge: we pushed efficiency to a totally new level. And we explored new ways to increase the range of an electric car,” said Joerg Bartels, vice president for Vehicle Engineering and Overall Vehicle Functions at Mercedes-Benz.

As a running and driving prototype, the EQXX showcases the potential capability of future Mercedes EQ models. The new battery technology, for example, will feature in production models by 2024.

The EQXX is said to sit one segment beneath the upcoming EQE saloon, suggesting it serve as an electric equivalent to the C-Class when it goes into production.

Mercedes EQXX interior

Mercedes-Benz has already announced plans to become a fully-electric car brand by the end of the decade, following a ramp-up in the development of zero-emission vehicles.

The German car maker says it will offer electric models in all segments by the end of the year and, from 2025, it will only launch electric platforms. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Sony is launching a mobility company and is considering moving into the electric vehicle (EV) market.

The Japanese tech giant made the announcement at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

Sony chairman and president Kenichiro Yoshida said: “With our imaging and sensing, cloud, 5G and entertainment technologies combined with our contents mastery, we believe Sony is well positioned as a creative entertainment company to redefine mobility.”

At CES 2020, Sony announced Vision-S, an initiative aimed at contributing to the evolution of mobility and exhibited a prototype vehicle at its booth.

Following the 2020 show it started public road testing in Europe and started verification tests of the safety and user experience of the imaging and sensing technology installed inside and outside the vehicle, and the human-machine interface (HMI) system.

Further 5G driving tests were held in April 2021.

At CES 2022, Sony has been exhibiting an SUV-type prototype vehicle – Vision-S 02.

Yoshida says that Sony sees mobility as an “entertainment space” where passengers could choose individual entertainment options and use 5G internet connection.

Bakar Sadik Agwan, senior automotive consulting analyst at GlobalData, said: “Over the past decade, Sony Group has strengthened its position in the automotive supply chain.

“Over and above semiconductors and electronics for automotive sector, the company’s capabilities now include image sensors, AI, cloud, 5G and autonomous technology.

“The EV concept Vision-S 01, which was also codenamed ‘Safety Cocoon’ surprised viewers with the Level 2 autonomous capabilities of the vehicle and ‘Time-of-Flight’ sensors capable of detecting and recognizing people/objects.

“Top-notch technological features in its first concept resulted in positive market sentiments for Sony, regarding its capabilities to manufacture EVs.

“Sony’s mobility vision aims at developing technologies centred on safety and security, adaptability, and entertainment. The company, also a leader in the entertainment business, aims to utilise its capabilities and equip its EVs with unique entertainment experience, which at this point of time, is differentiating Sony from other automakers.

“However, it will be worthy to wait and see if the entertainment/infotainment features could create a difference for Sony in the EV market.

“Above all factors, Sony will have to face fierce competition from fast growing global automakers including Tesla, Toyota, Ford, Hyundai and GM, which are much ahead in the race.”

Sony says it will establish an operating company ‘Sony Mobility Inc.’ in the spring of 2022, through which it intends to explore entry into the EV market. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

New electric vehicle (EV) charge points, installed at home and in the workplace from May, will be pre-programmed to switch off during peak hours to ease pressure on the National Grid.

A ‘randomised delay’ of up to 30 minutes, when there is high demand from motorists, will also be introduced as more company car drivers make the switch to EVs away from diesel and petrol.

New chargers will not operate from 8am to 11am and 4pm to 10pm, but owners and fleets will be able to override the preset times to take account of night workers and people who have different schedules. 

Public chargers and rapid chargers, on motorways and A-roads, will be exempt, reports The Times.

Tanya Sinclair, policy director for UK and Ireland at ChargePoint, said: “Concerns surrounding the UK’s grid to support the charging of electric vehicles is mounting.

“The challenge for the Government, and perhaps the wider electricity system, is ensuring the ‘smartness’ in every charger is actively used by consumers, and managing the load represented by the legacy charging infrastructure already in the field which is not smart.”

The National Grid has estimated that 80% of EV drivers will use smart charging by 2050 and this will help balance almost half of the UK’s energy demands brought on by the move to zero emissions driving.

It says that around 45% of homes will actively help to balance the grid, offering up to 38GW of flexible electricity to help manage peaks and fill troughs in demand.

Smart changing means EV owners can plug in their vehicles and a management system will top up the vehicle at times that will be most beneficial to manage energy demand.

It also allows drivers and fleet operators to manage their charging stations remotely, implement new features automatically and gather data about how chargers are being used and by whom.

Government consultation on smart charging

The move to a default off-peak charging setting was first mooted in a Government consultation on Electric Vehicle Smart Charging, in 2019.

In its response to the consultation, published recently, it said that many respondents raised concerns about defining a specific off-peak time period in legislation, suggesting it could result in a secondary peak in demand.

Based on the feedback, it said it would adopt a more “nuanced approach” by mandating that smart charge points must prompt users to input a charging schedule and they must be preset to offer users a charging schedule that by default prevents EVs from charging at peak times.

During first use, the user must be given the opportunity to edit or remove this setting, it said. The user must also be able to remove or edit this default setting at a later date.

Peak times will be defined in legislation as 8am to 11am and 4pm to 10pm on weekdays. This time window, the Government says, is consistent both with its internal projections of expected EV demand, and with various external studies of EV charging patterns.

It explains that mandating the setting of a default charging mode will help mitigate the risk that some users do not engage with smart charging offers, and instead charge during peak times.

Importantly, it adds, mandating that users must be informed of and prompted to edit the pre-set charging schedule during first use of the chargepoint will help mitigate the risk that any default setting causes confusion and negatively impacts the user experience.

The consumer override and edit functions will ensure that users can turn off or edit their charging schedule, for example where they wish to sign-up to a DSR service such as a smart tariff.

Defining a peak time period in legislation instead of an off-peak period could encourage greater variation in approach amongst charge point sellers, thereby helping to mitigate the risk of a default mode requirement causing secondary peaks in demand, it argues.

However, it says it will monitor the effectiveness of this approach “closely” as part of our post-legislation evaluation.

The upcoming 2021 Smart Systems and Flexibility Plan will outline the steps that Government is taking to help drive the uptake of smart charging offers, including work to help ensure that consumers have confidence in the smart charging market.

Ben Fletcher, associate director of EV at Moixa, said: “Concerns surrounding the grid being able to support charging of electric vehicles aren’t new and the Government’s proposed plans around smart charger capabilities are a good way of answering this.

“The challenge is ensuring consumers are given the right tools to put them in control, and allow them to intelligently charge in an easy, flexible way that is convenient for them.

“Intelligent EV charging not only allows individuals greater control over the power in their vehicle but also enables greater access to cheaper, greener energy.  In turn, this ensures that drivers can decide when they want their vehicle to be ready by and the system then optimises when the vehicle charges.”

Moixa, through its Smart Battery hardware and Gridshare software, facilitates smart energy storage and sharing. “We facilitate and interpret interactions between energy storage devices and the grid, enabling data driven optimisation,” explained Fletcher.

“This means we can alleviate the demand on the grid and pave the way for smart EV charging, as well as help companies manage energy storage using advanced analytical data.

“Intelligent home charging is critical to help EV owners save money on their energy bill by tapping into cheaper energy rates while also enabling more renewable energy on the grid by integrating with increasingly agile tariffs.”

News of the charge point ‘switch off’ comes after MPs on the transport committee warned that unless charging habits change the charging needs from millions of new EVs will cause blackouts to parts of the country.

In a report – Zero emission vehicles  – published by the transport committee in July, the MPs set out a series of recommendations to Government to boost the production and purchase of EVs. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

HMRC has clarified the tax policy concerning the VAT treatment of the charging of electric vehicles (EVs) via public charge points and at home.

The tax authority says that the standard rate of VAT applies to supplies of EV charging through charge points in public places.

It has also explained when input tax can be recovered for charging EVs for business purposes.

HMRC says that supplies of EV charging through charge points in public places are charged at the standard rate of VAT. There is no exemption or relief that reduces the rate of VAT charged.

There is a reduced rate of VAT for supplies of small quantities of electricity, known as ‘de minimis’.

The de minimis provision only applies if the supply of electricity is all of the following: ongoing; to a person’s house or building; and less than 1,000 kilowatt hours a month.

The de minimis provision does not apply to supplies of EV charging at charge points in public places.

This, says HMRC, is because these supplies are made at various places such as car parks, petrol stations and on-street parking, not to a person’s house or building.

In addition, these supplies are not usually an ongoing supply to one person where the rate of supply can be calculated.

HMRC says that it is possible to recover the input tax for charging an EV if all of the following apply: you are a sole proprietor; you charge your electric vehicle at home; and you charge your electric vehicle for business purposes.

HMRC says you should work out how much of charging your EV is for business use and how much is for private use. VAT is recoverable only on the business use amount. The usual input tax rules apply.

It means businesses cannot reclaim VAT on electricity used by an employee to recharge a vehicle at home, even when the charging is for business journeys.

However, HMRC’s policy on petrol/diesel is to allow VAT recovery when an employee fills up their car and is reimbursed by their employer.

As a sole proprietor, HMRC says it is also possible to recover the input tax for charging your EV for business use at other places. The usual input tax rules apply.

The rate for recovery of input tax for charging EVs is the same as the VAT rate charged on the supply of electricity.

For employees charging an EV (which is used for business) at home, HMRC says the VAT cannot be recovered, because the supply is made to the employee and not to the business.

For employees charging an employer’s EV (for both business and private use) at the employer’s premises, the employee will need to keep a record of their business and private mileage so that the employer can work out the amounts of business use and private use for the vehicle.

HMRC says it is possible to recover the full amount of VAT for the supply of electricity used to charge the EV. This includes the electricity for private use.

However, you will be liable for an output tax charge on the amount for private use. This is because a ‘deemed supply’ has been made.

Alternatively, you can recover VAT on only the business element. The usual input tax rules apply. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Osprey Charging has opened a new high-powered electric vehicle (EV) charging hub in Croydon.

The hub is located in Purley Cross Retail Park and features six rapid chargers, ranging from 75kW to 175kW

It is part of a wider rollout of more than 150 charging hubs that are being delivered across the UK by Osprey Charging, in a £75 million programme.

Ian Johnson, CEO of Osprey Charging said: “London drew a line in the sand with the expansion of the ULEZ zone in the city, sending a clear message to Londoners to rapidly switch to cleaner modes of transport.

Our new hub in Croydon – one of the most powerful of its kind in the city – will give current and future EV drivers in London access to reliable and convenient charging.

“Our nationwide hubs roll-out will see large-scale charging infrastructure deployed rapidly, at the scale required to serve the mass market of EV drivers hitting Britain’s roads in the coming years.”

The number of EVs in the capital has increased by 95% in 2021 compared to the previous year, leading to greater demand for public charging infrastructure. The Mayor’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Delivery Plan estimates that by 2025 London may need up to 4,000 rapid charging points.

Osprey’s £75 million UK-wide EV charging hub rollout will see a total of 1,500 150-175KW rapid chargers installed across 150 sites nationwide over the next four years.

The new Croydon hub is adjacent to a number of retail outlets including Starbucks, Aldi and Smyths Toys, allowing drivers to charge their cars whilst they shop. The hub also supports major transport routes into the city and sees 18,500 cars pass by every day.

Osprey Charging has entered a new partnership with Bonnet to open up access to EV charging to drivers using the Bonnet app 

 Patrick Reich, co-founder and CEO of Bonnet, said: “It’s an exciting time to be partnering with Osprey. One of the key stumbling blocks to EV adoption is the lack of public rapid charger availability and confusion around how to use different public charging networks.

This partnership offers Osprey’s state-of-the-art rapid charging experience through the Bonnet app, which simplifies membership, payments and gives drivers real-time chargepoint info straight from the operator.”  By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

This is something that I have mentioned in my book Electric Cars – The Truth Revealed. The charger infrastructure is growing but there are rural areas that need investment.

Fleets have highlighted issues with electric vehicle (EV) charging in rural areas and storms that cause power outages at an Association of Fleet Professional (AFP) webinar.

Members of the AFP’s Kerbside Charging Group, including James Rooney, fleet engineer at Centrica, David Fisher, fleet manager at Virgin Media O2, Dale Eynon, director of DEFRA Group Fleet Services and Simon Gray, head of fleet and travel at SSE, voiced their concerns.

Dale explained that operating a fleet that largely functioned in rural places was presenting particular challenges.

He explained “Large parts of the areas that we need to reach have literally nothing in the way of charging facilities. The public infrastructure is currently very much based around motorways and A roads.

“There are potential solutions, however. One promising avenue is charger sharing, which means that we may be able to access private charging points on a pay-per-use basis using an app. We are also looking at increasing our return-to-base charging capacity, although this has limits.”

Meanwhile, Gray explained the issues that the recent Storm Arwen had highlighted in terms of using EVs to respond to emergency situations. “We had 700 engineers on the ground during Arwen who were trying to restore essential power to homes and businesses,” he said.

“The situation did raise a fundamental question – how do you keep EVs running during a power outage?

“We’re looking into answers to this conundrum and alternative resources may include options such as mobile chargers. Our view is that there will be solutions to this issue but that we just need to identify them.”

The meeting, held yesterday (Wednesday, December 15), was also told about the AFP’s plans to draw up a national heat map showing where kerbside charging was needed. Based on feedback from 160,000 fleet drivers, this should be available early in 2022.

Paul Hollick, chair at the AFP, said: “Every day we are hearing from fleets, especially van fleets, that want to speed up the electrification of their operations but are being hampered by the problem of charging for drivers who do not have a drive or access to a charger.

“This is generally thought to be about 40% of drivers across all fleets but, when it comes to light commercial vehicles, we believe the figure to be nearer 70%. That means good availability of kerbside charging is essential if van electrification is going to be a success.

“We are in the process of a massive data gathering exercise among operators from both within and outside the AFP to gather postcode information for potential and existing EV drivers who need access to a kerbside charger.

“This is, we believe, an essential task and should open the door to much more widespread fleet EV adoption, much faster, than would occur if government and charging companies were simply trying to estimate where provision was required.” By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

A Government transport minister is calling for the country to move away from car ownership with shared mobility instead becoming the norm.

Outlining her support for a system that’s “fit for the future”, transport minister Trudy Harrison said the country needs to move away from “20th century thinking centred around private vehicle ownership” and introduce “greater flexibility, with personal choice and low carbon shared transport”.

Shared transport includes bike share schemes, car clubs, shared rides, e-scooters, and digital demand responsive transport.

Harrison told delegates at the Collaborative Mobility UK (CoMoUK) annual shared transport conference, it was “staggering” that nearly two-thirds of car trips are taken by lone drivers.

She said that the UK is at a “tipping point” where shared mobility will soon be a “realistic option for many of us to get around, where mobility hubs become a familiar part of our street architecture, and where all these options will be available to book and pay for at the touch of a smartphone”.

“The challenge is to move further and faster to make shared mobility less of a novelty and increasing the norm to make it as easy, as convenient and as accessible as possible,” she added.

“We are reaching a tipping point where shared mobility in the form of car clubs, scooters and bike shares will soon be a realistic option for many of us to get around.

“Where mobility hubs become a familiar part of our street architecture and where all these options will be available to book and pay for at the touch of a smartphone.

“I think the benefits are really significant: from clean air to healthier populations to greater connectivity for more people, no matter where they live.”

CoMoUK is the national organisation for shared transport, a charity dedicated to its public benefit.

Richard Dilks, chief executive of CoMoUK, said that the minister’s comments were very welcome and demonstrate that shared transport is firmly on the Government’s agenda.

“Shared transport is the key to a more sustainable future for the UK, enabling people to use transport without the need to own it – shifting to resources such as car clubs, bike share, shared rides and demand responsive transport – with a lower impact on the environment and transport infrastructure,” he added.

“By encouraging people to use public and active travel modes more, governments can help reduce the demand for privately owned cars and achieve the country’s net zero strategy.”  By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

The Government is increasingly using the term automated technology rather than full driverless cars when referring to the options for use on public roads, according to Isobel Pastor, head of the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) at the Department for Transport.

Speaking at the Smart Transport winter conference, Pastor described two “tracks” for autonomy: conditional automation, typically Level 3, such as lane keeping systems, and full autonomous vehicles.

“With conditional automation, we can see things such as lane keeping, which will be restricted to 37mph when introduced, increasing to 70mph,” Pastor said. She also anticipated systems that could change lane for the driver, with the technology “progressing from there”.

She added: “But it is harder to see a trajectory for fully autonomous vehicles that can drive themselves in any location, and that’s why we have come away from the word autonomy towards automated or self-driving technology.”

The bigger opportunity for automation, and to win public buy in, is in the shared transport space, she believes, including buses or delivery services which cover selected locations and specific times.

Here, Level 4, where no driver attention is required in limited spatial areas or special circumstances, is more reliable and less susceptible to the complexities of roads filled with full-, part- and non-autonomous vehicles.

“We can see a trajectory towards that in defined areas, such as geofencing and hubs, over the next five-to-10 years,” Pastor said. “This gives us a real opportunity to cement behaviours in this space with passengers before we go into the private space with increasing autonomy.

“But making it attractive in the private space, we hope it will appeal to the private user more because of the increased safety benefits, but we also recognise the challenge of people being wedded to their own car.”

Industry experts agree, with several telling Fleet News in the December issue that passenger cars could be at the back of the queue when it comes to full automation. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

BP Pulse and Charge Your Car, also BP owned, have been rated among the worst public electric vehicle charging networks in the UK in a Zap-Map survey.

The UK’s leading electric vehicle (EV) mapping service has released its annual public charging network satisfaction rankings, with Instavolt occupying the top spot.

InstaVolt’s chief executive officer, Adrian Keen, said it was an “incredibly proud moment” for the business.

“It comes at a time of increased competition with new charge point providers entering the market, and the standard of charging providers improving as the industry begins to better deliver for the consumer,” he added. “To claim top spot as the Best EV Charging Network is testament to our company ethos which is to make charging simple and reliable for all EV drivers.

“It’s through the hard work and determination of the team at InstaVolt which has allowed us to deliver more rapid chargers to the network this year than ever before, and I want to thank each and every one of our incredible employees, clients and industry partners that has contributed so far.”

Keen says the business has no intention of resting on its laurels either. “EV adoption is at an all-time high, and we plan to install even more rapid chargers, deliver exciting new partnerships and invest in even smarter technology,” he said.

The league table, now in its 4th year, comes from Zap-Map’s annual EV charging survey, which had more than 3,000 respondents.

As part of the survey, respondents rate their overall satisfaction for the networks they use regularly, which is then used to rank each network out of a maximum of five stars. They also rated their level of satisfaction with the networks in four key areas: reliability, ease of use, cost and facilities.

This year Zap-Map is awarding a new ‘Best EV Charging Network’ accreditation to the top scorer, and ‘EV Driver Recommended’ badge given to the top three.

InstaVolt scored particularly highly for reliability and ease of use, securing its ‘Best EV Charging Network’ badge.

Taking the ‘EV Driver Recommended’ second and third places respectively are two other rapid charging networks, MFG EV Power and Osprey.

At the bottom of the table, the legacy Ecotricity Electric Highway points that have not yet been migrated to Gridserve’s new chargers are in last place overall for the second year in a row.

BP Pulse has slipped into the bottom three, where it is also joined by BP Pulse owned network Charge Your Car.

BP Pulse (formerly BP Chargemaster/Polar) was ranked fifth in 2019, before falling to 13th last year and 16th this year with two-and-a-half-stars.

A spokesperson for the network told Fleet News that the survey reflects the “poor experiences” some of its customers have had recently and it is “disappointed” with its ranking.

She continued: “We’ve been working hard to improve over the last few months, trebling the size of our field service team, doubling the size of our contact centre, investing millions of pounds on new hardware and upgrading our technology to improve customers’ experiences.

“We’re proud of the fact that our network is the most-used in the UK and that we’re providing more kilowatt hours of energy to power more zero tailpipe emission miles than any other network.

“This year we’ve focussed on the roll-out of ultra-fast chargers to give EV drivers the opportunity to charge their vehicle in as little as 10 minutes, and we’re now providing the charging infrastructure for some of the UK’s biggest fleet businesses.”

Zap-Map says that it is worth noting that not all issues experienced by EV drivers can be attributed directly to the network, as they do not always own the chargers and set the tariffs.

New entrants to the Zap-Map league table

There are four new entrants to the league table. MFG EV Power is a new network that has installed charging hubs at its network of petrol stations and entered the list in second position.

Another new network, Gridserve Electric Highway, which has both rolled out its electric forecourt in Braintree and also bought, and is in the process of upgrading, Ecotricity’s network of chargers. Gridserve came joint fifth overall and for facilities.

Ubitricity, the on-street charging network, and EV Charge Online, with its network of destination chargers, while not new networks, made the league table for the first time in position ninth and 13th respectively.

ChargePlace Scotland, which came in 13th place overall, took first place for cost, thanks to many of its extensive network of rapid charge points being free to use.

ChargePlace Scotland is also going through a transition period, with a focus on improving the consumer experience.

Melanie Shufflebotham, co-founder and chief operating officer at Zap-Map, said: “Despite significant changes over the course of the year, there are some things that remain the same. EV drivers are clear about the factors that make for a good charging experience, namely reliability and ease of use – and these should be key priorities for the UK’s public charging networks.

“The Zap-Map survey shows that while this is being delivered by some, others are falling short and there needs to be improvement.

“As we move from the early adopters towards mass EV adoption, making public charging simple becomes more important than ever.”

The BP Pulse network was one of first networks in the UK (under the Chargemaster brand) and now boasts the largest network in terms of connectors with a mix of more than 2,980 ultra-rapid, rapid, fast and slow charging devices.

The network earned a low ranking for reliability and ease of use, coming in the bottom three and bottom four respectively.

Survey respondents commented that units are starting to become unreliable, also noting price rises and poor customer service. There were also mixed comments about the network’s app and support line.

BP Pulse has acknowledged issues with reliability and has been investing in both customer care and its charge point management platform, as well as its charge point portfolio.

Charge Your Car’s UK-wide network, meanwhile, which is owned by BP Pulse, consists of a mix of more than 680 rapid, fast and slow charging devices.

The network, which came 15th overall last year, earned a low ranking in all categories including last place for facilities, with the exception of cost where it came in eighth.

Feedback highlighted poor reliability, with chargers often being out of service, slow maintenance response and patchy customer service.

Many respondents saw Charge Your Car as old and complained about the usability of the app.

Although overall in second from the bottom once more, EV drivers have ranked Charge Your Car in eighth place for price, reflecting the fact that it allows the host site to set the pricing. This results in a variety of prices across different areas, with many devices being free to use.

By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Gridserve will open more than 20 ‘electric hubs’, each featuring 6-12 x 350kW ultra high-power electric vehicle (EV) charge points with contactless payment, at motorway service stations across the UK by Q2 2022.

The majority should be installed by the end of March, with a further 50 additional electric hub sites set to follow. 

Two Electric Forecourts situated adjacent to major transport routes and motorways, including a flagship site at Gatwick Airport and Norwich, are also in construction, due to open in 2022.

Several additional Electric Forecourt sites now also have planning permission including Uckfield, Gateshead, Plymouth and Bromborough, with more than 30 additional sites also under development as part of the company’s commitment to deliver over 100 Electric Forecourts.

Toddington Harper, CEO of Gridserve, said: “Our mission is to deliver sustainable energy and move the needle on climate change, and that is exactly what we are doing – delivering.

“Getting people into electric vehicles is a big part of our vision but to do that charging has to be simple and free of anxiety, which is why we’ve designed our network entirely around the needs of drivers, listening to our customers’ needs and providing the best possible level of customer service to deliver the confidence people need to make the switch to electric transport today, eight-years ahead of the 2030 ban on petrol and diesel cars.”

Gridserve says it wants to revolutionise EV charging across the UK, following the acquisition of Ecotricity’s Electric Highway network in June.

Some of the Electric Hubs are also located in areas traditionally left behind in the EV transition, including Wales and Cornwall, helping to deliver its vision of giving drivers everywhere the confidence to go electric well ahead of the 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars.

Since the acquisition, Gridserve has invested tens of millions of pounds in the network to develop the new Electric Hubs, replace the 300+ existing motorway chargers it inherited from Ecotricity, and install 130 additional AC chargers to cater for all types of EVs.

The two new Electric Forecourts for Gatwick and Norwich will follow Gridserve’s blueprint of the world’s first Electric Forecourt in Braintree, Essex.

Gatwick Electric Forecourt

Developed in partnership with Gatwick Airport, the Gatwick Electric Forecourt will be a flagship site, serving passengers, commuters, staff, local residents and businesses that pass through the airport and its surrounding motorway network each year.

Located on the Ring Road South approach to Gatwick’s South Terminal and adjacent to the M23 – it will enable 36 EVs to be charged simultaneously, with high-power chargers that can deliver up to 350kW of charging power, capable of adding 100 miles of range in less than 10 minutes. Multiple charging connectors will cater for all types of electric cars.

The site is due to open in autumn 2022 and will host a café, waiting lounge with free superfast WiFi, convenience supermarket, children’s play area and a dedicated educational space to increase awareness around electric vehicles.

Harper said: “Gatwick isn’t just an airport, it’s an ecosystem of commuters, travellers, staff, taxi drivers, car rental companies, local residents and businesses, all culminating in a transport hub that hosts tens of millions of drivers every single year.

“The Gatwick Electric Forecourt will give these drivers and businesses the confidence to switch away from petrol and diesel cars, making electric journeys to and from one of the country’s most important transport hubs straightforward and sustainable.”

Jonathan Pollard, chief commercial officer, Gatwick Airport, said: “Our new high-powered charging facility will help meet the increasing need for electric vehicle charging infrastructure at the airport, including the growing number of our passengers who own electric vehicles and need fast, convenient and effective charging facilities.

“The new charging infrastructure will also benefit people right across our community, including thousands of staff who live locally, businesses looking to introduce electric vehicle fleets – even those operating buses and trucks – and also local residents who may be considering buying an electric-powered car but were undecided due to the lack of charging facilities.”

The Norwich Electric Forecourt, which is nearing the end of its construction, and scheduled to open in April 2022, will mirror the set up at Gatwick.

David Hall, VP Power Systems UK and Ireland for Schneider Electric, says the announcement from Gridserve will help “unleash” the potential of EVs by reducing fears of range anxiety.

“To support the growth of adoption in electric mobility, which is crucial to achieving ambitious targets to reduce global CO2 emissions, we need readily available infrastructure to support EVs and to ensure the electric revolution is renewable, plentiful, and affordable,” said Hall. “It is also a significant opportunity to rebuild the UK economy with climate action at its core.

“The UK already has more EV charging points than petrol stations, and one in ten new vehicles sold is an EV.  Businesses and transport companies are increasingly playing their part by switching to low carbon, net zero fleets for cars, trucks, and buses, which will be essential for cutting their carbon footprints.

We hope that this announcement will encourage those who were holding back to make the switch and come along for the ride.

“As the popularity of electric vehicles increases, we need to ensure that electric or hybrid vehicles are low-emission, the energy grid needs to be powered by a much higher percentage of renewables. This transition will bring additional consumer demand, effectively bringing the concept of net zero transportation to life.”

Gridserve’s latest sites:

Electric Hubs

Currently in construction: Swansea (Moto), Heston West (Moto), Severn View (Moto), Wetherby (Moto), Burton in Kendall (Moto), Exeter (Moto), Woolley Edge North (Moto), Woolley Edge South (Moto), Thurrock (Moto), Leigh Delamere Westbound (Moto), Reading West (Moto).

Entering construction early next year: Reading East (Moto), Grantham North (Moto), Scotch Corner (Moto), Washington North (Moto), Washington South (Moto), Cornwall Services, Annandale (Roadchef), Magor (Roadchef), Rownhams North (Roadchef), Durham (Roadchef), Watford Gap North (Roadchef), Watford Gap South (Roadchef), Northampton North (Roadchef), Northampton South (Roadchef), Strensham North (Roadchef), Strensham South (Roadchef)

Electric Forecourts

Currently in construction: Norwich Electric Forecourt (opening April 2022), Gatwick Electric Forecourt (opening Autumn 2022).

Planning permission secured: Uckfield, Gateshead, Plymouth, Bromborough.  By Graham Hill Thanks To Fleet News