The manufacturer-backed Ionity network has launched its first fast charging station in the UK – with other stations to follow swiftly.

The Motor Fuel Group forecourt in Maidstone is the latest station to be launched under the pan-European Ionity network and the first one in the UK

Located at a Maidstone forecourt operated by Motor Fuel Group, the charging station – which is equipped with four 350kW chargers – opens as part of plans for 40 Ionity sites in the UK, each with up to six chargers.

Open to all makes and models compatible with CCS chargers, the chargers at Maidstone will soon be joined by locations in Milton Keynes and Gretna Green, all powered by renewable sources through Octopus Energy.

And Ionity – founded in 2017 as a joint venture between Daimler, Ford, BMW and the Volkswagen Group with Audi and Porsche – also has plans to install 400 stations across Europe by 2020, housing up 2,400 chargers and enabling pan-European travel, with a focus on ultra-fast charging times and convenient motorway locations.

Michael Hajesch, CEO, Ionity, said: “We are passionate about making e-mobility a reality, with drivers already taking advantage of our convenient stations across Europe. We selected Octopus Energy to provide 100% renewable energy for our network of 40 High Power Charging stations in the UK. Coupled with the new charging times that 350 kW makes possible, this represents an important step towards making the environmentally friendly long-distance journey an everyday reality.”