UK passes major milestone with 10,000 EV rapid charge points

EV drivers have more charging choices than ever, and the roll-out rate continues to gather pace says Zapmap

The UK has passed a milestone in the roll-out of public rapid and ultra-rapid EV charge points, with 10,000 chargers now installed across the country.

According to charge point mapping service Zapmap, the 10,000th unit was installed by the GeniePoint network at Sedbergh Leisure Centre in Bradford. Zapmap rates 25-99kW chargers as rapid, and those capable of charging at over 100kW as ultra-rapid, and says the rest of the nation’s rapid and ultra-rapid chargers are spread across 5,000 locations.

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The popular charging app also has good news on the accelerating rate of charge point installations, with November’s year-on-year growth hitting 45 per cent – up from 34 per cent in November last year. Additionally, the power rating of installed chargers is increasing; at the end of 2020, chargers with an output of 100kW or more accounted for just 20 per cent of higher-powered installations. At the start of December this year, Zapmap counted 4,504 devices offering 100kW+ charging, which is 45 per cent of the rapid charger total.

The latest statistics also highlight the increasing trend for so-called ‘charging hubs’, which Zapmap defines as locations with six or more rapid or ultra rapid chargers. This time last year there were 99 such locations across the UK, whereas today that has more than doubled to 239.

“It’s great to see the UK surpass 10,000 high-powered charging devices. That’s not only because it illustrates the acceleration in the rate of charge point installation. It’s also because the data shows the increasing prevalence of the highest power devices, those with a power rating of 100kW or more,” said Zapmap head of insights Jade Edwards.

“Having accounted for a fifth of high-power devices in December 2020, now almost half of the UK’s high-powered chargers are capable of delivering 100kW or well above, enabling anyone driving home for Christmas in an electric car to get there that much quicker.”

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