Exciting times as Ofgem, the gas and electricity regulator, is today powering the electric vehicle (EV) revolution with a £300 million investment. This is for over 200 low carbon projects to get Britain ready for more electric transport.
It will be cabling motorway service areas and key trunk road locations across the country ready to install 1,800 new ultra-rapid charge points. This will triple the current network.
A further 1,750 charge points will be supported in towns and cities. As drivers make the switch from petrol and diesel to electric, Britain’s cables, substations and other infrastructure need a massive upgrade to support this new demand for electricity.
The investment will be delivered in the next two years and is part of a much bigger plan to ensure Britain has the energy infrastructure it needs to support the move to low carbon transport and heating while maintaining secure supplies.
The magnitude of this investment is expected to be in the order of over £40 billion through Ofgem’s regulation of energy networks. Every region in Britain will benefit from this with 204 net-zero projects worth £300.5 million across England, Scotland and Wales.
While electric car ownership is on the rise, Ofgem research found that 36 percent of households are put off making the switch over a lack of charging points near their home. An extensive motorway charging network and more charging points in cities and train stations will help address this ‘range anxiety’.
Jonathan Brearley, chief executive of Ofgem, said: “This £300 million down payment is just the start of building back a greener energy network which will see well over £40 billion of investment in Britain’s energy networks in the next seven years.
“The payment will support the rapid take up of electric vehicles which will be vital if Britain is to hit its climate change targets. Drivers need to be confident that they can charge their car quickly when they need to.
“We’re paving the way for the installation of 1,800 ultra-rapid charge points, tripling the number of these public charge points. Drivers will have more charging options for longer journeys.
Rachel Maclean, transport minister, said: “I warmly welcome today’s news which will greatly improve the resilience of our charging network as we build back greener.
“With more than 500,000 electric cars now on UK roads, this will help to increase this number even further as drivers continue to make the switch to cleaner, greener vehicles.”
