UK gets 1,000 new electric car chargers with multi-million pound investment
Plans to install 1,000 chargers over 28 retail sites is being billed as “major step forward” for EV charging infrastructure
A big investment in public charging infrastructure will apparently deliver 1,000 new charging bays across 28 locations, including what will become the “largest retail destination EV charging hub in the UK” at the Bluewater shopping centre in Kent.
RAW Charging is partnering with Landsec, operator of 28 destinations such as Bluewater, plus Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth and the White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds, to invest £24.5m in the UK’s public charging network. The apparent 20-year partnership will also include a “major replace and upgrade” programme to modernise legacy charging infrastructure that “no longer meets current standards for speed, reliability, or accessibility”.
Some of the 1,000 installations are apparently already complete, and of the 554 AC fast chargers and 446 DC rapid chargers planned over the next few years, 200 will be installed at Bluewater. The first part of the project will comprise a new 24-bay ultra-rapid super hub that’s set to launch later this summer. A spokesperson for RAW Charging told Auto Express it expects the rest to “come to fruition in 2027 and 2028”.
RAW Charging believes the promised upgrades will “improve charge time” and ensure shoppers and retailers benefit from “best-in-class EV-charging technology and operational performance”. It says its network is “fully accessible via contactless payment and all major EV charging apps”.
RAW Charging has active sites serving companies and locations including the National Trust and Merlin Entertainments, the parent company for attractions such as Legoland Windsor, Chessington World of Adventures and Alton Towers.
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