All new home charge points for electric vehicles (EVs) will have to use innovative 'smart' technology to receive government funding, the Department for Transport has announced today.
It said that smart technology could reduce high peaks of energy demand, lessen the impact of EVs on the electricity system, and cut costs for consumers by encouraging off-peak charging.
All charge points backed by the EV Homecharge Scheme will have to prove they can be accessed remotely, and capable of receiving, interpreting and reacting to a signal by 1 July 2019.
Roads minister, Michael Ellis, said: “The government wants the UK to be the best place in the world to build and own an electric vehicle, with leadership and innovation helping us pave the pay to a zero emission future.
“We're in the driving seat of the zero emission revolution. Our new requirements for charge points could help keep costs down, ensuring the benefits of green transport are felt by everyone.“
Around 200 charge point models from 25 manufacturers have been confirmed as eligible for government funding, and can been viewed on an online charge point model approval list.
This comes after plans were announced last year to ensure all new cars are “effectively zero emission“ by 2040, along with a £1.5bn investment to support zero emission vehicles.
The UK has since seen record levels of ultra-low emission vehicles registered.
Although often highly polluting in the manufacturing stage, the European Environment Agency has said that battery electric cars emit less greenhouse gases and air pollutants over their entire life cycle than petrol and diesel cars.
Meanwhile, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) estimates that autonomous EVs (A-EVs) could bridge around one-third of the gap between current decarbonisation rates and those needed to limit global warming to 2ÀöC.
“It is clear that the future for vehicles is autonomous and electric,“ PwC assistant director of climate change, Lit Ping Low, said.
“A-EVs could drive a swift and substantial shift towards achieving the Paris Agreement's 2ÀöC objective.“
Image credit: iStock
