Highways England award £2.8m EV charging contract

Highways England has awarded £2.8m to BP Chargemaster and Swarco UK Ltd who will install and operate over 50 EV charging points across the UK.

The price includes initial installation and commissioning of facilities followed by ongoing operation and maintenance for the seven-year period of the contract.

BP Chargemaster will carry out the work in the north of the country and Swarco UK Ltd in the south.

The government body has said they want 95% of its strategic road network to be served by an electric vehicle charger within 20 miles by 2020.

David Martell, chief executive of BP Chargemaster, said: ‘Access to convenient, fast and reliable charging points across the UK will help enable the mass adoption of electric vehicles.

‘We have been focused on creating such infrastructure over the past 10 years and are very proud to be working with Highways England to expand the provision of rapid charging points so that an even greater number of drivers can make the switch to electric.’

Last month, the Department for Transport announced that £6m will be spent installing 300 rapid charge points and 46 fast charge points for ultra-low emission taxis in 17 local authorities, including in Greater Manchester, Brighton and Hove, Leicester and the north east.

Officials estimated that more than 800 ultra-low emission black cabs and more than 3,000 ultra-low emission private hire vehicles will benefit from the new charge points, which they believe will encourage a shift towards cleaner vehicles in the industry.