Electric vehicle (EV) charging business bp Pulse has unveiled a public EV charging hub at the NEC Birmingham, which its developers have called the “largest” in the UK.
Opened officially last Thursday (7 September), the EV charging site, which has been developed with support from The EV Network (EVN) as well as the NEC Group, is capable of charging 180 EVs simultaneously.
The “Gigahub”, as it has been named, utilises ultra-fast 16x 300KW DC chargers, two of which are designated accessible bays, alongside a further 150 points for 7kW charging. The ultra-fast chargers are capable of charging 30 EVs simultaneously.
The Gigahub is able to be accessed via the main NEC Campus through road, less than a mile from junction six on the M42 and just 2.4 miles from junction 7A for the M6. Its location means it will help cater for one of the UK’s busiest areas seeing an average yearly traffic count of 60 million.
In addition to the new charging hub, bp Pulse has previously opened Gigahubs in Park Lane, London, at Gatwick Airport, and Kettering.
“The transition to EVs is evolving at pace which is why bp pulse is focussed on accelerating the development of the UK’s EV infrastructure, delivering the right charging speeds, in the right locations and investing up to £1 billion to do so,” said Akira Kirton, vice-president of bp pulse UK.
“This new, nationally significant bp pulse Gigahub at the heart of the UK’s road network, is another great example of our strategy in action. We plan to roll out hundreds of hubs this decade in places EV drivers needs them – urban areas, on trunk roads and motorways and at destinations such as restaurants, retail parks and hotels.”
EVN invested in the multimillion-pound project and designed, developed and constructed the EV Charging Gigahub after signing a long-term agreement with NEC Group to bring EV charging infrastructure to the entire campus.
To provide electricity for the EV chargers, EVN secured a 6.5MVA grid connection.
The chancellor of the exchequer, Jeremy Hunt MP visited the site for its opening ceremony and said: “This is the biggest private investment in electric charging in the UK and is a huge vote of confidence in Britain’s role as a leader in green industries.
“The ground-breaking site will be a major transport hub for the future and marks a significant step in our rollout of electric vehicle charging infrastructure across the country.”
Current± publisher Solar Media is hosting its EV World Congress event in London this 10-11 October. The conference will focus on some of the key discussion points from across the EV sector including delivering coherent EV charging strategies, whether the UK is on course for its 2030 charging target, vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology and more. More information, including how to attend, can be read here.