Specifically, the chargers will be located in Wellington, Dawley, Oakengates, Hadley, Ironbridge and Newport. All of them are fast-chargers, though the local government does not specify the output. It does say, however, that all chargers will have “two sockets, meaning a total of 140 cars would be able to charge at the same time.”
The infrastructure will be supplied by charge point operator Believ. The press image shows a Tritium charger, which provides 75kW to 150 kW. However, as Tritium recently went bankrupt and was sold to the Indian company Exicom, it can not be said with certainty that these are the chargers set up in Telford & Wrekin.
The British borough wants to be carbon neutral by 2030. Last year, it submitted a bid to the UK government for the funding of 44 new EV charging stations. The current undertaking is also funded in part by the UK government’s on-street residential charge point scheme (ORCS), as well as Believ.
“From delivering fully-funded solutions to working in partnership with other sources of funding, we work to deploy bespoke, end-to-end EV charging solutions that suit the area and our partners best,” said Guy Bartlett, Chief Executive Officer of Believ. “It is through these partnerships and active collaboration that we move closer to achieving cleaner air for all, and we are excited to be part of Telford & Wrekin Council’s journey.”
Councillor Carolyn Healy, (Lab) Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, Planning & Sustainability said: “In 2019 Telford & Wrekin Council declared a climate emergency and committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2030. Five years later, we have cut our carbon emissions by 61 per cent and on track to hit our target date. With the council switching its own fleet to zero-emissions vehicles, these new charging points will help residents to make the switch to electric vehicles too, making it easier to charge their vehicles whilst using our free council car parks.”