Hello, I’m Tom Riley, and welcome back to The Fast Charge, a British EV newsletter.
In today’s edition… a breakdown of EV stories that I’ve been looking at over the past week. No big feature today, though some juicy bits are coming down the tracks.
Today, I’m going to be at Everything Electric, and I'm looking forward to seeing many of you there (here). There’s still time to drop me a message if you’re about.
As ever, if you have any comments or feedback, please do get in touch by replying to this email or using the links below.
What I’ve been looking at…
Politics…
⚡️ Last week, I wrote about the recent ZEV mandate changes. One of the things I mentioned was that a consumer package was in the works, though it had to be sidelined as it wasn’t ready when Downing Street decided last weekend to hijack the whole policy in light of Trump’s tariffs. A post by Vicky Read, CEO of ChargeUK, this past week outside No10 suggests it’s still on the table. I understand the charging networks are pushing the government hard - their belief is the swing has gone far too much towards the carmakers, with many accepting we will see less capitalised networks ‘go under’ before too long. The timing of a package is unconfirmed, though people are very hopeful of it being meaty. This will likely also please Mike Hawes, CEO of SMMT, who in his most recent update suggested the mandate easing was only a ‘first step’ for carmakers too.
🙋♂️My take? Given the CEOs of BlackRock and JPMorgan Chase this past week (reported in the excellent Transcript) have suggested the US is in (or at least sliding into) a recession whatever Trump now does. It’s likely the same story here, and so if I were HM Treasury, living amongst all this uncertainty, I’m not sure I’d want to be pledging any more money unless absolutely essential.
So, what to do instead? I may be wrong, though if I were Chancellor, I’d probably review the company car tax reliefs - maybe put even more emphasis on the used EV market - then either back or consult on some of the wider challenges for drivers and networks, such as charge point pricing (aka. reviewing the way standing charges works for EV sites), agree to little things like EV signage. And, dare I say it, finally use the £950m Rapid Charger Fund, or perhaps back reforming the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (a big ticket item for operators). All these would actually be very cheap.
🚙 Not all carmakers were pleased with the ZEV mandate changes. Some of those already doing quite well with EVs were quite upset. One such was Polestar, whose UK boss, Matt Galvin, said this week: “It is really disappointing and the government is doing nothing to incentivise the retail car buyer into an electric vehicle. In fact the opposite… The ZEV mandate is now not fit for purpose. The government has kicked the can down the road and, yes, it will slow down the transition.” Ouch! Read more (paywall).
💸 In a letter to parliamentarians, the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) has said leasing firms are losing millions due to the depreciation of EVs from falling residual values - despite these firms being key to EV uptake. A topic to watch as we potentially hear more about the above ‘package’. Read more.
👩💼 Talking of senior parliamentarians, the Transport Secretary delivered a speech last week with her vision for the transport system. It’s worth a read. However, within it, there’s finally confirmation of something that’s been worrying me since she was appointed: does she really own a convertible Mini Cooper in racing green? The answer is… YES! You read it here first in December.
Infrastructure…
🧑💻 In November, new regulations started applying to public charging networks, including that they needed to meet ‘open data’ requirements. The thinking is that the better the data we have about charge points, the easier it is for drivers using the network, and for developers looking to make better navigation tools (etc, etc.). However, it seems not all operators are meeting the obligations, based on the research of a Mr James O’Neill, whose recently published table (view on LinkedIn here) summarises how he’s got on asking each network for data. It seems a spotty picture - he found issues getting data with 10 of the biggest 25 networks. Keep at it James, the networks are monitoring your posts!
📊 Speaking of why this is important, a recent study by the National Bureau of Economic Research believes EV sales could rise 8% by 2030 if there were better real-time data for charging locations. Read more.
📈 Trojan Energy, who install and operates the flush charge points, has announced a new partnership with Harrow Council. The tie-up will see Harrow have 100 points installed across the borough for residents. Read more.
🔌 Talking of street charging, I’m told the ‘flat charging cable’ - being made by a company called Ghost and has done the rounds across LinkedIn - should be available in the UK during Summer.
Vehicles…
🚘 Over the weekend, SMMT revealed that the number of vehicles in the UK has hit 41,964,268 - the highest level ever. And 1.3 million of these are electric. A huge figure. I do wonder if we need all of them. Read more.
💡 A new report from the University of Sheffield has said the UK government needs to go beyond offering subsidies for low-carbon technologies, like EVs and solar panels for energy and heating, if it is to meet its net-zero targets by 2050. In short, more consideration should be given to consumers’ socioeconomic status. Great idea by Sheffield, though first the government would need to consider the actual consumer. Read more.
🤯 The electric McMurtry Spéirling has had a busy week. Not only did it break the world record in driving upside down - an absolutely insane video here - but it’s also utterly smashed the Top Gear lap record, completing it in 55 seconds - that video is equally mad. All this is down to the McMurtry’s 2 tonnes of downforce which is ‘available on demand’. Woof!
🏎️ Due to so many luxury carmakers being reliant on US sales, these companies may shift the extra cost that US customers would have to pay onto wider global buyers. So every Ferrari buyers loses. Read more (paywall).
🥖 In lighter tariff news, it seems one victor from Trump’s trade policies could be the French carmaker Renault. It has very few sales in the US and is just at the end of a five-year turnaround, with some good-looking EVs rolling off the line. Read more (paywall). However, they had best work quickly, as it seems Trump could make yet another reversal on his automotive tariffs. See a report here.
🤖 Nissan has become the first major carmaker to partner with the UK AI firm Wayve, which is a significantly bigger foray into self-driving for the Japanese company. Read more.
Batteries…
♻️ As I revealed some years ago, the huge US recycling company Redwood Materials, set up by Tesla co-founder JB Straubel, has a small base near Leeds. It’s largely made up of a specialist engineering company Redwood acquired called ‘Inprotec’. Interestingly, according to recent Companies House filings in February, Redwood UK has had a director shake-up. New additions replacing everyone else are Redwood’s Chief Commercial Officer, and it’s also added their General Counsel. They have also this week announced a partnership with Lime. Are there UK plans afoot?
📸 And, finally… I normally hate these, but the Oxford Mail has put together some vintage pictures of EVs in Oxford. Quite enjoyed spooling through.
