Shell Global plans to add 50,000 on-street electric vehicle (EV) charging posts in the U.K. by the end of 2025 as the company seeks to futureproof its core business associated with vehicle refueling.
The move is a wider effort by the U.K. government to bring more EV charging to drivers without private parking and get charging networks up-and-running as fast as possible. Through its Ubitricity subsidiary, the chargers will support local authorities to install on-street chargers in towns and cities across the U.K. at potentially zero cost.
Already 3,600 Ubitricity chargers are in place in the country.
New EV charging infrastructure is coming globally as demand for EVs increases. In fact, experts believe operators will expand charging infrastructure at a much higher rate than the demand for hydrocarbon fuels that grew steadily over the previous 120 years.
IHS Markit forecasts that the number of public and semi-public charging stations will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28% between 2020 and 2030.
The need for more charging stations is becoming a necessity due to automotive OEMs target date to transition selling primarily EV models by 2030, one of the largest shifts in an industry in a very long time. If there are not enough stations to meet demand, the transition may stall.
Why on-street chargers
Recently, England’s Committee for Climate Change recommended that the U.K. needed 150,000 public charge points operating across the country by 2025.
The U.K. is looking to expand on-street parking due to the fact more than 60% of households in English cities and urban areas do not have off-street parking. This percentage grows among those living in social housing.
“It’s vital to speed up the pace of EV charger installation across the U.K. and this aim and financing offer is designed to help achieve that,” said David Bunch, Shell’s U.K. Country Chair. “Whether at home, at work or on-the-go, we want to give drivers across the U.K. accessible EV charging options, so that more drivers can switch to electric.”
While 50,000 chargers will be added in the U.K., Shell is seeking to operate 500,000 charge points by 2025 as part of its target to be a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050.
