The government has confirmed that only ‘smart’ electric vehicle chargepoints can be installed from July next year.
In an announcement this morning, roads minister Jesse Norman and automotive minister Richard Harrington confirmed the phase-out date for older generation EV chargers, fulfilling a policy pledge first unveiled in October last year.
The government defines smart chargers as those which can be remotely accessed and capable of receiving, interpreting and acting on signals. Those capabilities will allow EV charging patterns to be remotely assessed and managed by a third-party, essentially protecting distribution grids from surges in demand.
Zappi 2018 EV Charge Point (Image: myEnergi)
In October last year the Department for Transport published its draft Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill, which established a number of broad stroke proposals for how the government planned to improve the country’s EV charging infrastructure.
The adoption of smart EV chargers formed a central point of that strategy and, now, the government has followed through by enforcing a firm deadline for their installation.
Harrington said: “Today’s measures will make it easier for consumers to move towards electric vehicles, helping us power towards a cleaner, greener future.”
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