Major British companies come together to accelerate EV transition

Seven UK companies, including BT, Royal Mail, ScottishPower and Tesco have come together to accelerate the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs). 

In a report, the seven companies, working together as the Electric Vehicle Fleet Accelerator (EVFA) have outlined a series of actions needed from both industry and government to deliver the targets, these include: 

• Future-proofing the electricity network infrastructure: ensuring that price controls and funding measures reflect the scale of the challenge, the need to invest in the network ahead of need, and support levelling up with investment in areas the market doesn’t reach.
• Enabling the UK-wide rollout of charging infrastructure: fast-tracking EV charging infrastructure in the planning system, aligning with local authorities to unlock land for charging infrastructure, and setting clear funding frameworks.
• Overcoming demand obstacles: increasing capital support for grid reinforcement costs, introducing minimum standards for reliability, safety and interoperability, and improving access to public charging networks.
• Expanding the supply of UK-made vehicles: providing strong demand signals to OEMs from fleets, setting increasing requirements for zero-emissions vehicles for manufacturers, and incentivising second-hand EV market with VAT exemption.

If the Government delivers on this agenda, the EVFA members have committed to converting their fleets to electric vehicles by 2030.

The report details how supportive government policy could help to unlock £50bn worth of private sector investment in infrastructure and electric vehicles in the UK over the next five years.

If the infrastructure and frameworks are put in place to enable this, the companies believe wider customer demand can shift towards EVs sooner than is currently expected.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson commented on this report: ‘I wholeheartedly welcome this commitment by leading employers to fully electrify their van fleets by 2030. This announcement will be a major boost to British vehicle production.

‘The government is committed to providing the electric charging points and other infrastructure the UK needs as we build back greener.’

Photo by Andrew Roberts