Welsh councils to receive UK Government funding to improve EV Charging Infrastructure

Nine local authorities across Wales are set to receive hundreds of thousands of pounds from the UK Government’s Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) to install electric vehicle charge points in car parks in residential areas.

Five councils in Gwent including Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Monmouthshire, Newport and Torfaen will receive £458,724.50 ($564,231.14) this year to install 73 charge points with 146 individual sockets across the region. Cardiff, Carmarthenshire, Powys and Swansea councils have also applied for thousands of pounds of funding, with the amounts set to be confirmed.

Evidence indicates that most plug-in vehicle owners will wish to do the largest proportion of their charging at home, but many areas in the UK have residential areas where off-street parking is not an option, presenting a barrier to plug-in vehicle adoption. The funding aims to increase the availability of affordable and accessible charging options, which will be key to increasing the uptake of plug in vehicles in the UK.

Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps doubled the funding available through the on-street residential charge points scheme for 2019/20 by £2.5 million ($3.08 million).

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said: “The next few decades will be transformative for our transport industry and therefore it is vital that electric vehicle drivers feel confident about the availability of charge points near their homes and along their journeys. Greater availability of charge points will also encourage a shift towards greener transport, bringing significant environmental benefits with it. That is why the UK Government is committed to delivering this funding for local authorities across Wales, and I would encourage more councils to apply in order to create the necessary infrastructure to help us reach our net zero emissions target.”