500 electric car charging point to be installed across borough

DRIVERS of electric vehicles are set to receive a boost after Qwello won the brief to install up to 500 charging points across Solihull.

Following a competitive tender process, Solihull Borough Council has awarded the contract to the Munich-based pan-European charge point operator.

As part of phase one of the rollout, more than 150 charging points will be installed across nine locations, including 16 rapid charging points by InstaVolt.

The first sites are anticipated to go live this summer.

Phase one locations include Knowle, Balsall Common and Solihull town centre and all of the charging points are due to be operational by 2026.

The roll-out is supported by a £800,000 grant from the so-called Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure pilot project, awarded by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles and Department for Transport.

Qwello’s UK managing director Martin Hale said: “Qwello has a proven track record of delivering charging solutions across many European cities and towns including London, Munich and Stockholm.

“We are thrilled to be working with our installation and maintenance partners Radius Charge Installations, InstaVolt and Solihull Council to help realise their ambitious EV charging plans.”

Cllr Andy Mackiewicz, climate change and planning chief with the council, added: “This is fantastic news for Solihull which will more than double the borough’s existing EV charging capacity.

“Road traffic currently accounts for 41 per cent of the borough’s overall greenhouse gas emissions so making the switch to electric vehicles is going to be an essential part of our own efforts to tackle climate change.

“By facilitating the transition away from fossil-fuelled vehicles, we also have an exciting opportunity to drive improvements in air quality that will benefit the health and economy of Solihull.

“The awarding of this contract drives our ambition for Solihull to be at the forefront of electrification both regionally and nationally and we are delighted to be working with leading suppliers Qwello and InstaVolt on this exciting scheme.”