UK’s largest EV charger supplier confirms it will install network of superfast 150kW chargers at BP forecourts; 100 fitted by end of year
The UK’s largest provider of chargepoints for electric vehicles, BP Chargemaster, has confirmed it will install a network of 400 superfast 150kW public chargepoints by 2021, with 100 being installed at 50 sites by the end of 2019.
Tufan Erginbilgic, the chief executive of Downstream at BP, told BP Chargemaster’s Powering the Charge conference it would start rolling the chargers out from July, with work installing 400 units to be completed by 2021.
• Electric car charging in the UK: everything you need to know
Current rapid chargers typically replenish EV batteries at a rate of between 43kW and 50kW, while Tesla Superchargers charge at between 120 and 150 kW, depending on version.
The rollout of a non-proprietary superfast EV charger network, and charging infrastructure in general, is a seen as a key requirement if the UK is to meet its climate change targets, and fulfil government promises that no new conventional petrol and diesel cars will be sold from 2040 onwards.
BP Chargemaster’s announcement, coupled with Shell-Ionity’s plans to build a network of even faster 350kW chargers, is the latest sign the drive to electric power continues to gain momentum at a rate of knots.
While charge times vary from EV to EV, and many of the current electric cars available are unable to accept charges at rates higher than 50kW, the latest models, such as the Audi e-tron can accept a 150kW charge, meaning around 30 minutes to be charged from 10 to 80 per cent (a typical ‘full’ charge) in around 30 minutes. Future EVs, such as the Porsche Taycan, promise to accept charges as fast as 350kW.
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