Connected Kerb pledges £1.9bn to install 190,000 EV chargers by 2030

Connected Kerb has announced plans to install 190,000 public on-street EV chargers, worth up to £1.9bn, by 2030.

The EV infrastructure firm is also announcing new partnerships for 10,000 public on-street EV chargers across the UK in 2021 alone, the majority of which will be deployed across West Sussex and Kent.

The West Sussex tender is believed to be the UK’s largest ever deployment by a local authority. Deals for a further 30,000 chargers are expected conclude next year, as part of the company’s ambition to “level up” charging across the UK.

Connected Kerb says the investment will “revolutionise” access to EV charging for the tens of millions of drivers without off-street parking and support mass market charging for workplaces and fleets.

Dr Chris Pateman-Jones, chief executive officer of Connected Kerb, said: “Knowing you can arrive at virtually any location, at any time, in any vehicle and cheaply charge your battery without inconvenience or faff is the reality we have to deliver to create an EV society. Our rollout of public chargers – one of the most ambitious the UK has ever seen – encapsulates that future, helping individuals and businesses to confidently make the switch to electric, reducing their carbon footprint and cutting air pollution.

“Targets are important – for an industry so critical to the decarbonisation of transport, we need goals to work towards and objectives to which we are all accountable. However, they need to be met with action. With deals confirmed for 10,000 chargers this year alone and 30,000 more expected next year, we are demonstrating that we’re getting on with the job and delivering the change that needs to happen – not just talking about it.”

Lord Gerry Grimstone, Minister for Investment at Department for International Trade and Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, added: “Connected Kerb’s significant investment in electric vehicle chargers will support the UK’s commitment to green growth and ambitious net zero targets.

“Investments like this will be vital to help reduce emissions and limit the rise in global temperatures whilst driving jobs, growth and levelling up across the country.”

The majority of the 10,000 chargers will be installed on streets, in public sector car parks and at community facilities for West Sussex Council by 2030, following a tender win by Connected Kerb. The rollout is believed to be the UK’s largest ever deployment of EV chargers by a local authority.

Kent County Council has also revealed that it has chosen Connected Kerb to deploy at least 600 chargers by 2023. Installations are beginning this year, with many of the chargers installed in parish towns and rural areas across Kent. Thousands more chargers are also announced today as part of tenders with councils including Coventry (300 chargers), Cambridge (360) and Plymouth (100), and recently, Milton Keynes (250), Warrington (30), Medway (30), and Glasgow City Council, East Lothian Council, Shropshire County Council and Hackney Council, as part of the Agile Streets trial (100).

Transport Minister Trudy Harrison said: “Providing reliable and affordable on-street charging is vital as we work to decarbonise transport and level up across the country.

“It’s great to see Connected Kerb and local authorities working together as the Government commits £2.5bn towards electric vehicle grants and the development of EV infrastructure in our towns and cities.”

Connected Kerb has installed 1,000 chargers in 2021 alone and expects to have 5,500 installed across the UK, with contracts secured for 30,000 more, by the end of 2022. By 2030, the company plans to have 190,000 chargers installed.