Category Archives: Charging

Jolt offers first 7kWh free to charge an electric vehicle

Jolt has launched its free fast-charging service for electric vehicles (EVs) in the UK after striking a deal with the London Borough of Barnet.

The charge point operator offers UK EV drivers 7 kWh, or around 30 miles, of free, fast charging, with cost of charging offset though its integrated advertising network.

After users have consumed 7 kWh for the calendar day, drivers will be charged a per kWh rate.

Born in Australia, Jolt recently announced its partnership with Telus to develop 5,000 EV chargers across Canada and currently operates in New Zealand, Canada and the USA.

Electric Vehicle Charge Points
Electric Vehicle Charge Points

The company plans to roll-out thousands of charging stations across the UK in the next few years.

John Rainford, UK country manager at Jolt, said: “Accelerating e-mobility, in a way that’s equitable and sustainable to all involved, is at the heart of what we do at Jolt.

“We are proud to express our commitment to making EV charging accessible through seamless customer experience, especially for those without home charging, and empowering EV ownership in the UK, while helping minimise emissions created by transport.

“Thanks to our partners who are working towards the same ambitious net zero goals, we anticipate accelerated growth and expansion of Jolt’s EV charging infrastructure across the country.”

The partnership with the London Borough of Barnet follows a £2.1 million funding grant, as part of the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Pilot Project, a government scheme supporting the rollout of EV charging infrastructure.

Read more: FleetNews

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How do you charge an electric car?

So you’re thinking of buying an EV. Great! But, um, how do you charge an electric car? This is how…

Congratulations! You are either the proud new owner of a planet-saving, neighbour-impressing electric car, or you are thinking about owning a planet-saving, neighbour-impressing electric car. Either way, this is big news.

And presumably if you’ve clicked on an article headlined ‘How do you charge an electric car?’, you’re more likely to be in the latter camp at the moment. If not, well… that is an interesting move on your part.

 

Vauxhall Ampera Charging (Image: OLEV)
Vauxhall Ampera Charging (Image: OLEV)

You see, switching from petrol or diesel to a ‘leccy-driven car means you’re about to embark on a number of changes. None more fundamental than how you put the energy in the things to make ‘em move.

So without further ado, here’s our explainer on how to charge an electric vehicle (EV). You could say it’s EV-peasy… yep, bad joke. We’ll up our game now.

How do I charge an electric car?

You charge an electric car by plugging a special charging cable into a special socket. That’s it in a nutshell. What, you want more?

Okay, if you’ve got your own driveway or garage space, the vast majority of the charging you do will take place at home. This is good news because it’s convenient (no more queuing at the forecourt) and where you’ll usually find the cheapest electricity. Yes, even in these financially troublesome times.

Read more: TopGear

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Hundreds of electric car charging points like this one are set to be installed at lampposts across Hounslow

Here’s How Many Solar Panels You’ll Need to Charge Your EV

In order to make your EV green-energy approved, you’ll need to charge it using a renewable energy source. Solar panels are one way to accomplish that.

For the eco-conscious EV driver, an electric vehicle is only as clean and green as the source of electricity charging its battery.

That’s because EVs plugged into the grid can either be powered by “dirty” sources such as fossil fuels such as coal, or from “clean” renewable energy that comes from sources such as solar, hydro or wind power. With many utilities, it’s likely to be a mix of renewables and fossil fuels. The best way to ensure your EV is actually powered by renewable energy is to connect your home’s EV charger to a solar energy system or use a public charger also sourced by solar panels.

 

An impediment to electric vehicle adoption is car dealerships.

With spiking gas and electric prices and an intensifying climate crisis, it’s no wonder the solar and electric vehicle industries are gaining in popularity each year.  Rooftop solar panel installations are breaking records, and US EV adoption is expected to accelerate — predicted to reach 40% of passenger car sales by 2030, according to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics.

Read more: cnet

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EV chargepoint prices and availability made public under new law

New laws approved by MPs on Tuesday evening (24 October) will require providers to publicly share data on electric vehicle (EV) chargepoint availability and charging prices.

The new regulations will mean that prices across chargepoints are both transparent and easy to compare, and drivers looking to charge will be able to find a chargepoint suiting their needs with little hassle. Drivers will also be able to check charging speeds and charger locations, as well as availability.

Once the regulations are passed, EV drivers will also have access to contact-free 24/7 helplines for any issues in accessing charging on public roads.

Technology and decarbonisation minister, Jesse Norman, said that the measures will improve EV charging for millions of drivers, providing price transparency which will allow drivers to get the best value, increasing the economic viability of driving electric.

These measures come as the UK reaches record numbers of public chargers, with numbers growing by 42% year-on-year. EV mapping service provider Zapmap revealed earlier this month that the UK has surpassed the 50,000 chargepoint milestone.

The beginning of October also saw the government announce a range of measures to accelerate the installation of chargepoints through its ‘Plan for Drivers‘ including extending chargepoint grants for schools and reviewing the grid connection process for chargepoints.

Read more: Current+

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UK’s ‘cheapest’ electric vehicle home-charging tariff launched

EDF has joined forces with charge point operator Pod Point to offer what it claims to be the UK’s cheapest electric vehicle (EV) home-charging tariff.

The Pod Point EV Exclusive Tariff will be made available to existing users and new customers buying a Solo 3 home charger when they sign up to use EDF for their energy.

It will see customers charged 7.4 pence per kilowatt hour for energy used between the hours of midnight and 5am – during which drivers can schedule their EV to charge.

Pod Point’s overnight rate, it says, is combined with a competitive daytime rate, to provide customers with the best overall EV tariff based on typical usage.

Job Done

It explained that its EV tariff is the cheapest available based on an annual Ofgem typical peak usage of 2,700kWh peak usage and 2,000 kWh off-peak EV charging usage (8,000 miles) when comparing the average peak and off-peak rate of the Pod Point EV Exclusive tariff for customers paying by direct debit and have a smart meter, with the average peak and off-peak rate rates of EV specific tariffs from other suppliers that do not require control of vehicle or charger

Read more: FleetNews

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Number of ultra-rapid charge points increase by almost 70% over a year

New data from Zapmap suggests the number of ultra-rapid charge points in the UK has increased by 68% over the past year.

The number of slow chargers has risen by almost 68% as well, with the latest Zapmap figures showing there were almost 50,000 public charging devices installed as of the end of September.

Charging Hub with eVolt Rapid Chargers (Image: SWARCO eVolt)
Charging Hub with eVolt Rapid Chargers (Image: SWARCO eVolt)

This represents overall year-on-year growth of more than 43%, with higher-powered charging points having grown by over 40% since September 2022, while lower-powered devices display year-on-year growth of 44%.

Over the past year, 5,749 slow devices have been installed across the country, alongside 1,568 ultra-rapid devices.

The new figures also show that the number of high-power charging hubs in the UK has more than doubled since September last year.

The number of ultra-rapid charging hubs with six or more devices (excluding non-public Tesla devices) has also shown impressive year-on-year growth of 123%.
At the end of September, there were 196 locations across the UK with six or more ultra-rapid devices – up from 88 in September 2022.

“This is great news for electric car drivers,” said Melanie Shufflebotham, co-founder and chief operating officer at Zapmap.

“With almost 200 high-power charging hubs up and down the country, these latest figures should give electric car drivers the confidence to drive any length of journey in their EV.

“As we approach the October half term, having an additional 108 new charging hubs across the UK speaks volumes – and is a huge step up from last year.

Read more: SmartTransport

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Octopus Energy to double the export rate of its EV tariff

Octopus Energy has confirmed that it will almost double the export rate of its electric vehicle (EV) tariff ‘Octopus Go’ to 8p/kWh.

The export rate for Octopus Go, which provides cost-effective overnight charging for EVs, was previously priced at 4.1p/kWh for exported electricity via the company’s Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) tariff.

Copyright: maridav / 123RF Stock Photo

But through the introduction of the new export tariff ‘Outgoing Fixed Lite’, those customers with solar panels and an EV will now receive 8p for each kWh exported back to the grid via vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology. Octopus stated that the use of this tariff could see an average household make an additional £66 a year.

“Octopus Energy is the number one EV tariff provider for a reason. Thanks to our customers and their EVs helping balance the grid at night, we’ve continued to unlock savings to pass on to our greenest customers. Octopus Go customers with solar panels will now earn twice as much money for the energy they export back to the grid – it certainly pays to be green,” said Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, chief product officer at Octopus Energy.

Last week, Octopus Energy announced a number of initiatives to support EV drivers, including a new 15p per kWh export tariff, and a community energy EV charging partnership with Co Charger.

Read more: Current+

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Is faster always better when it comes to EV charging?

22kWh home chargers slash your charging time, but for home use they might not be worth the hassle

Power matters when it comes to charging electric cars. Generally, the more Watts, the faster the potentially tiresome business takes place.

Renault ZOE

The fastest public car chargers offer up to 400kW, nearly 130 times the power you get from a three-pin socket at home. It’s enough to fill even the largest electric car batteries in record time. A long range Hyundai Ioniq 5 for example, on a 350kW charger, can get from 10% to 80% in around 18 minutes. That’s nearly 14 miles of added range every five minutes.

Of course, if you can, it’s vastly cheaper and more convenient to charge your electric car at home. But home chargers, which use alternating current (AC) rather than the direct current (DC) of rapid public ones, are much slower. Getting a full battery is typically an overnight affair.

The slowest home chargers run at 3.2kW, though most are 7.4kW which is about the same power as your home cooker circuit. These will fully charge a car like the long range Ioniq 5 in a rather pedestrian 11 hours or so.

Faster, 22kW AC home chargers are available, though. They sound appealing and can potentially slash your charging time to a third. But is the mindset of maximising your charging power at home a fallacy? Should you buy one? Probably not, and here’s why.

Read more: T3

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ScottishPower launches new overnight charging tariff for EV drivers

Energy company ScottishPower has launched a new tariff for electric vehicle (EV) drivers with “one of the lowest overnight charging rates available”, it claims.

The EV Saver tariff allows drivers to charge their cars for 7.45p/kWh between midnight and 5am.

The company, a subsidiary of Spanish utilities giant Iberdrola, said that they want to help encourage more drivers to make the switch to electric vehicles. The new tariff adds on to an existing home charging package which comes with free AA support for 12 months.

Andy Mouat, head of smart mobility at ScottishPower, said: “Latest figures show that more than 20% of new cars sold in the UK are now all-electric and we’re here to help lead the electrification of transport by making the transition to EVs easier and more affordable.

“Our new, competitive charging tariff offers clean affordable energy for our EV-driving customers while supporting the UK’s decarbonisation journey.”

The company says it is currently investing £8 million “every single working day” in the UK to support the energy transition.

The new EV Saver Tariff is available to existing ScottishPower domestic customers who have a smart meter and opt to pay by Direct Debit, and new domestic customers joining ScottishPower on its Standard Variable Tariff (SVT) who meet the same criteria.

In August, SocttishPower’s parent company Iberdrola secured a €500 million (£432 million) loan with Citi for the construction and development of the East Anglia III offshore wind farm.

Read more: Current+

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Peugeot 3008 hybrid SUV (Image: peugeot.co.uk)

Peugeot E-3008 is an all-electric SUV crossover with over 430 miles of range

The new flagship EV from Peugeot is the first to use the STLA M platform and is set to banish range anxiety forever

The Peugeot E-3008 combines the best of two worlds. This third-generation SUV crossover model is an established ICE model turned electric. However, as it uses a brand new platform the internals have been completely redesigned for electric use, rather than being a simple engine swap.

Peugeot 3008 hybrid SUV (Image: peugeot.co.uk)
Peugeot 3008 hybrid SUV (Image: peugeot.co.uk)

Electric versions of existing models give brand-loyal customers some reassurance when making their first move to an electric vehicle. While the use of a dedicated electric platform, like this one from Stellantis, means that the car is optimised for electric power.

The result is something that not only looks great but also offers the best range in its class – and one of the best in EVs generally. The larger 98kWh battery E-3008 promises a range of up to 700km (or 434 miles). That’s certainly enough to not worry about finding electric chargers. Even the smaller 73kWh battery will deliver 525km (326 miles).

There are a few design changes for the third generation of the 3008 that raise the profile of this car. Designed in France and built in its factory in Sochaux, Peugeot talk of this flagship model of having an allure, and you can certainly see that in the changes.

Read more: T3

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