New Q2 analysis of EV charger growth + EVA England previews survey results
New Q2 analysis of EV charger growth + EVA England previews survey results
The latest news from the world of EVs
Morning, I’m Tom Riley and welcome back to The Fast Charge, a British EV newsletter.
Top stories include… analysis of the latest government EV charger statistics, the PM seemingly abandons green policy, and EVA England previews its first-cut survey results showing favoured networks.
On account of me being quite ill the past couple of days, there is sadly no mini-news round-up today – apart from three that I wanted to pull out – but normal service next week.
As ever, if you have any thoughts or comments, please do get in touch. My contact details are here or simply reply to this email.
Analysis of the latest EV charger statistics
Background: Last Wednesday the Department for Transport published their latest quarterly EV charger statistics – covering the three months up to 1 July 2023. You can find it here if you missed it.
Headline figures… There are now more than 44,020 EV chargers in the UK, with 8,461 of these being rapid. Overall, the rollout has held its quick pace, with 3,870 being installed – which is a 10% increase compared to the last update, when 3,095 were added, a new record for quarterly installs.
Rapid rise… Last quarter saw a huge uptick in rapid chargers being installed. More than 814 were switched on. In particular, ultra-rapid devices (which are more than 100kW) were the fastest rising category of charger – increasing by 29%. There are now 3,437 of these chargers.
Fries with that? On the back of the record month for ultra-rapids, I decided to take a look at where these chargers actually are. While most are located at motorway stops and hubs, using various maps and the network’s own websites, I discovered that more than one in ten chargers are stationed at fast food locations. This covers places like McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC, and others. Fast food for fast charging.
EV data… While the number of chargers is growing, based on my data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, this is now the second quarter in a row where registrations of EVs haven’t risen – down from a high in Q4 2022. See chart below.
Better distributed… The good news about having a couple of slower quarters for EV registrations is that the ‘car to charger’ ratio is also remaining flat. Likewise, in a positive story for the sector, thanks to the great year for ultra-rapid installations, the number of EVs to each superfast charger has improved by nearly 25% since the start of 2022.
However… One not-so-good thing I noted in the statistics is that installations of slow EV chargers – such as those on-street in lampposts for those people without a driveway – are almost grinding to a halt. According to the data, there are currently 10,641 slow devices (3-6kW) in the UK. But that’s only a 30% increase from the same time last year.
Worrying? These chargers are meant to be the easiest and cheapest to install and, in the government’s infrastructure strategy, it suggested these types of chargers would make up the vast bulk of the public network. I’ve created the below graph that plots both the current rate of annual growth (30%) and also if annual installations stayed the same up to 2030. In any case, seems low to me.
EVA England previews charging survey response
Context: Last week the EV Association for England hosted a virtual Townhall event. During the meeting, CEO James Court talked through some of the progress on policy, and it also included a session with Sophie Adams, Head of Consumer Engagement at OZEV, who talked through the recent charge point regulations.
Revelations… During the Q&A with Sophie, she shared a couple of bits of note. Firstly, Sophie did not rule out that contactless would not one day apply to chargers below 8kW – such as on lampposts – and said the agency was “gathering evidence” on its implications. Many argue it would be a silly extra cost. Secondly, Sophie said the expectation was the regulations will become law in October/November – election permitting.
Elsewhere… About two weeks ago, EVA England launched the ‘Great EV Charging Survey’ to gauge views from UK drivers on networks, experience, and policies. During the session, a snapshot of initial results – based on 900 responses – were revealed showing people’s experience of using different major charging networks. In short… Tesla, Fastned, and MFG are the clear winners. BP Pulse, GeniePoint, and Shell seemingly being out of favour.
Overall… I thought it was a nicely put-together session. Well done guys. And if you didn’t manage to attend, you can watch it online here.
Government harpoons its environmental credentials
Background: Yesterday Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Energy Secretary Grant Shapps announced that the government will grant ‘hundreds’ of new oil and gas licences in the UK. The messaging around the news from Downing Street is that the new licences are needed to secure our energy security and to protect 200,000 jobs.
Also revealed… The government said it would be pushing ahead with Carbon Capture projects in the UK, providing £20 billion, which will apparently support 50,000 jobs. On the news, Sunak said: “It’s vital that we bolster our energy security and capitalise on that independence to deliver more affordable, clean energy to British homes and businesses.” Read the press release here.
In response… Many companies in the oil and gas industry are very pleased with the PM saying we need to ‘max out’ the North Sea. However, many have been frustrated by this move.
Obviously… They have made this decision to create a dividing line between the Conservatives and Labour. Naturally, I’m sure there are lots of private polls and focus groups that have said this move will be good for Sunak. But, at what cost? By making this news so big and public, they have indicated a lack of grit.
Also upset… Chris Skidmore MP, who chaired the government’s recent Net Zero Review, said it was “the wrong decision at precisely the wrong time.” In a statement on the website previously known as Twitter, he added the decision is “on the wrong side of history, that will not look favourably on the decision taken today.”
100% agree. We need to be supporting the energy transition, and instead of granting licences quicker for oil and gas, why not sort out the cluster of issues with planning in this country – which is causing projects to stall, and thus not create jobs here. Meanwhile, our allies in the US and Europe are charging ahead.
Bad times… This news comes as the attacks in the media on climate-related policies only persist. In fact, yesterday The Sun revealed its ‘five point plan to protect drivers’ which included that they want the 2030 ban on new diesel and petrol cars “delayed until the nation is prepared”. See here.
Next steps? Net zero policies are now seemingly off the agenda for this government. It was noticeable in the official materials about the above news that Grant Shapp had entirely dropped ‘net zero’ from his title – only referring to himself as the ‘Energy Security Secretary’. Your move, Kier.
In other EV news…
💰 Congratulations to Gridserve who last week announced that they’d raised half a billion in financing to accelerate its expansion. This will help them build more than 500 super hubs nationwide and 3,000 ultra-rapid chargers. Great news.
🙅 There have been a great number of stories about Chinese EVs entering the UK at the minute, and how this surge might cause issues for us down the line. For example, this in The Guardian or this in The Times. While I agree many of these reports are overhyped, I disagree with some EV influencers who talk about Chinese cars as being the solution to our affordability challenge. I personally think that’s a bit amateurish – and many others have told me similar too. I’m working on a feature around this, so let me know if you have views.
👍 Finally, speaking of affordability, in good news for consumers, Octopus EV has launched a salary sacrifice scheme for second-hand electric cars. This will mean people can get an EV from £300 a month, including their fuel and maintenance. Models on offer will include the Renault Zoe, Peugeot e-208, and Vauxhall Mokka-e. Likewise, people can also get more premium used vehicles, such as a Tesla Model 3. Read more.
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