Weaving a plan for Northern Ireland

Octopus Investments commits up to £50m to Weev’s development

Chargepoint network Weev has devised a plan to address the shortage of charging infrastructure in Northern Ireland. Its rollout programme will be supported by up to £50m of funding from Octopus Investments,

This marks the first investment for Octopus Sustainable Infrastructure Fund (OSIF), a strategy announced by Octopus Energy last year with cornerstone investment from the UK Infrastructure Bank

Electric vehicle drivers in Northern Ireland are disproportionately underserved in terms of charging infrastructure. According to the Department for Transport, the region had only 20 public chargepoints per 100,000 people – substantially lower than the UK average of 60 per 100,000 people.

The UK government’s plan to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030 will apply to all regions of the UK and this disparity underpins the opportunity for significant investment into Northern Ireland’s EV charging infrastructure.

Weev was set up by Dominic Kearns and Thomas O’Hagan in 2022. Their company installs public chargers and EV solutions for workplace and fleet.

Philip Rainey, chief executive of Weev, said: “In a world of rising energy prices, consumers and fleet operators are now thinking more seriously than ever before about switching to