Business news

EQUANS joins Ford’s BlueOval network

Ford has teamed up with UK chargepoint network operator EQUANS to give owners of its electric vehicles better access to chargers when on the road. Ford’s partnership with

EQUANS, which owns and operates the GeniePoint charger network, takes the Ford BlueOval network to over 16,000 UK chargepoints, and more than 300,000 across Europe. The carmaker has signed similar deals with the IONITY and bp pulse networks.

The BlueOval EV charging scheme is accessible via the Ford Pass app. BlueOval charge network users include owners of the regular allelectric Mustang Mach-E introduced last year, plus Ford Kuga car and Transit/Tourneo Custom van plug-in hybrids.

GeniePoint, the third largest rapid charging network in the UK, has more than 500 rapid chargepoints, which can now be located, monitored and paid for within the Ford Pass app. Last year bp pulse, the biggest

A Ford Mustang Mach-E and an EQUANS charger

public charging network in the UK, was also integrated.

Tim Nicklin, Ford’s electrification manager, said: “The new Mustang Mach-E, and our plug-in hybrids, are propelling Ford at pace towards electrified engines accounting for more than half of our car sales by the end of 2022.

“Key to this roll-out is providing Ford customers with a supporting infrastructure and now, together with GeniePoint, we continue our commitment to match more electrified vehicles with enough locations to charge them.”

Dee Humphries, managing director of EQUANS’ EV Solutions business, said: “We’re delighted to be linking with Ford to provide their drivers with access to our rapidly growing GeniePoint network. This partnership reflects our focus at GeniePoint, which is to make it as easy as possible for EV drivers to get a charge whenever and wherever they need it.”

EQT acquires InstaVolt

InstaVolt has a new owner, with Zouk Capital having sold the charging infrastructure provider to the investor EQT Infrastructure.

Headquartered in Basingstoke, InstaVolt was founded in 2016 and currently operates around 700 DC charging points with 50kW capacity.

Adrian Keen

Its chargepoints are most often situated at retail, food, beverage and forecourt sites. Current partners include McDonald’s, Costa Coffee and Booths.

Adrian Keen, InstaVolt’s chief executive officer, said: “InstaVolt has set a standard in the UK for driver experience and infrastructure, and now with support from EQT, we are in a unique position to accelerate that target and replicate our model in other geographies, transitioning the business into the next phase of growth.”

Anna Sundell, partner and head of EQT Infrastructure’s UK advisory team, said: “The future is electric and InstaVolt is essential to the roll-out of EV charging infrastructure across the UK, a prerequisite for enabling mass adoption of EVs.”

Vauxhall partners with JustPark to boost home charging

Vauxhall has entered into a partnership with parking provider JustPark to help people buying its electric vehicles find convenient charging locations near their homes.

The carmaker is encouraging EV drivers without home charging to join the JustCharge Community Charging network, which sees people with a charger on their drive or property rent these out to other EV drivers.

Paul Willcox, managing director, Vauxhall, said: “Charging at home overnight is the most convenient and cheapest charging solution. But, around 40% of households in the UK do not have access to off-street parking and therefore the switch to electric isn’t the same for everyone. Vauxhall is committed to making going electric as simple as possible –so, we’re delighted to lead the way and partner with JustPark and its new JustCharge Community Charging network.”

Matt Shirley, head of EV networks at JustPark, said: “Having lived with an electric vehicle without a home charging point, I know firsthand the challenges that solely relying on public chargers can bring.”

A Vauxhall Mokka-e

Europe needs 65m EV chargers by 2035

Eurelectric and EY report sets out scale of challenge

The transition to electric vehicles will create a need for Europe’s public authorities, electricity utilities, grid and chargepoint operators to work together in order to plan charging infrastructure, says a study produced by Eurelectric and Ernst & Young (EY).

It is predicted that there will be 130 million electric vehicles on European roads by 2035, up from 3.3 million today. The growth in EVs means that 65 million chargers need to be installed to unlock a seamless user experience. Of those, 85% will be residential, while 4% will be on public highways.

Jean-Bernard Lévy, Eurelectric’s president said: “Electrification is now an irreversible megatrend in road transport. The challenge ahead is speeding up infrastructure roll out in a wellcoordinated manner to respond to growing charging needs while ensuring the optimal use of the electricity network.”

Eurelectric represents the interests of the European electricity sector, with members in over 30 European countries. The organisation’s members comprise 3,500 companies in power generation, distribution and supply.

The study focusses on the anticipated surge in EV sales across Europe (the EU 27, plus Norway, Switzerland and the UK) and the charging infrastructure that is required to support it. It analyses different charging needs across six segments: residential – rural and urban, workplace, fleet hubs, overnight stay hubs and highways, and examines the impact on electricity load. It also seeks to articulate the scale of the challenge and the technology solutions that are either available, or under development, to minimise peak load and capture value from flexibility in EV batteries, and smart charging solutions.

Serge Colle, EY’s global energy and resources industry market leader, said: “To accelerate EV uptake, we need to make e-mobility work for the customer. This means delivering a seamless experience with a robust charging infrastructure that allows everyone to charge quickly and reliably. With significant investment needed in the grid and on supporting critical digital solutions, utilities are key to winning customers’ hearts and minds.”

The charging infrastructure roll-out must keep up the EV market growth. The study flags up an urgent need to tackle existing bottlenecks such as: permitting and grid connection delays of up to 36 months, funding constraints, availability and access to real-estate in strategic charging locations and interoperability restrictions.

The study predicts the existing electricity grid will be able to accommodate the transition to EVs, but advance planning and coordination are needed to ensure that it copes with future peaks in energy demand and increased loads. Once EV penetration reaches 50% on an urban distribution network, uncontrolled charging could lead to voltage deviations and affect the quality of power supply.

In addition to overseeing the installation of millions of chargers, Europe’s utility industry will need to manage an increased load on the grid. Along highway corridors, where drivers will expect fast charging on demand, EVs could increase peak loads by 90%, according to EY’s calculations. Managing these surges will require on-site solar and energy storage systems at charging stations.

In urban residential settings, EY expects charging demand to surge in the evenings, when drivers return from work, causing potential increases in peak load of 86%. To smooth these peaks electricity providers will need to offer incentives for drivers to charge at off-peak times and to put power from car batteries back into the grid, meaning both homes and cars will need two-way charging capabilities. With such mitigations in place, according to the report, utilities could reduce EV demand spikes by more than a fifth.

The study explores several mitigating solutions to such challenges. While ensuring that chargepoints are situated where they deliver maximum customer convenience and provide the right investment incentives, it recommends to: • digitalise the grid to understand, anticipate and optimise customer behaviour, grid impacts and network needs • install smart chargers to manage capacity and prevent the grid from buckling under the pressure of millions of EVs plugging in simultaneously • integrate energy storage solutions in the charging infrastructure for situations when demand for rapid and high-power charging is heightened.

A street charger in the Netherlands