ZipCharge plan to democratise public EV charging

This represents the second phase of its strategic plan to provide convenient, low-cost access to energy for everyone.

For the last 50 years, Earth Day has taken place on April 22 to bring awareness to the environmental issues that the world faces, and on Earth Day 2022 ZipCharge will announce a new type of infrastructure that rethinks the role and purpose of public EV charging. ZipCharge will “power communities” providing more equitable access to charging and energy for everyone and every type of community. It will be affordable, resilient, and sustainable.

The ZipCharge will present a solution that combines charging and energy to support the global energy transition and acceleration of renewable energy.  ZipCharge will showcase how infrastructure can manage energy in a smarter, more efficient and sustainable way.

ZipCharge Co-founder Jonathan Carrier said: “We are at a critical point in our need to protect the planet and take more substantive steps towards decarbonising society and managing our energy use in a smarter way for our collective benefit. As such we believe there is a unique opportunity to reimagine the purpose and role of public infrastructure, how it integrates and serves its community, not only to provide charging but manage energy in a smarter way.  We believe the ZipCharge Go can facilitate more accessible, equitable access to energy that can be used in multiple ways, not just for charging an electric vehicle. 

“From the outset ZipCharge has been committed to the democratisation of energy and making EV charging more accessible to more people. Now it’s our opportunity to make EV charging part of a smart energy system, so it is more inclusive and democratic. We are excited to showcase the next stage in our journey and desire to transform how people access energy, anywhere so we can create benefits for everyone and every community, regardless of where they live, what they drive and how they move

“Our announcement will be a natural evolution from the ZipCharge Go, and will serve to further remove common barriers to EV ownership – by bringing the possibility of charging to anyone who can’t currently plug-in at their house. In the UK alone, 8.5 million or 40% of car-owning households are without designated or off-street parking. Elsewhere, this figure reaches 60% for example in Italy, Spain, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea and in major cities in the USA, China and India.”

In the last six months the US, UK and European Union have announced ambitious plans to develop EV charging infrastructure at a national level. The Biden-⁠Harris Electric Vehicle Charging Action Planset a goal of deploying 500,000 chargers by 2030 backed by a $7.5bn investment for EV infrastructure. In March, the UK government released its electric vehicle infrastructure strategy which has set a target of 300,000 public charge points by 2030. The government will invest £500 million to bring public charge points to communities across the UK, including £450 million to boost on-street charging for those without driveways.