National Highways has made an £8m investment into new high-powered charging infrastructure that will support ultra-rapid charger rollout on England’s motorways.

The multi-million-pound investment supports the installation of high-powered chargers where the grid supply is not sufficient

The contract has been awarded to renewable energy developer Ameresco, which will deploy the Energy Storage Systems – essentially giant battery packs – at seven motorway service areas where the grid supply is not enough for ultra-rapid charging infrastructure.

This will support the Government’s aim for all motorway service areas to have at least six high-powered, open access charge points by the end of 2023.

The priority sites include Beaconsfield on the M40; Corley on the M6 Northbound; Clacket Lane on the M25, both Eastbound and Westbound; Maidstone on the M20; Taunton on the M5 Northbound; and Tebay on the M6 Northbound.

Malcolm Wilkinson, head of energy for National Highways, said: “We are working differently and innovating to support the switch to zero-emission journeys.

“Whilst we have limited control over the number of petrol and diesel cars on the network, by supporting the expansion of the high-powered charge points network, we hope to increase EV drivers’ confidence for all types of journeys, both long and short.

“These new Energy Storage Systems and the high-powered chargers they supply will help ensure that motorists are unlikely to be caught without somewhere to charge, which is a fantastic move for drivers and the environment accelerating the speed in which we transition to new electric vehicles.”

Mark Apsey, managing director at Ameresco, added: “We are excited to be working with National Highways installing Energy Storage Systems across the UK’s motorways for the roll-out of high-speed EV chargers. These systems will facilitate the uptake of EVs by creating the infrastructure needed for people to switch with confidence.

“Transport accounts for around 27% of UK GHG emissions and it is imperative we switch as quickly as possible if the UK is to meet its target to decarbonise by 2050.”

Ameresco will work closely with all motorway service area operators involved – Extra, Roadchef, Welcome Break and Westmorland – on applications to local authorities for planning permission and to the distribution network operators to secure permission to connect the Energy Storage System to the grid.

Each system will have a typical storage capacity of 2MWh and the batteries will charge overnight when spare electric is available. They’ll have enough energy to enable EV charging for over two million miles every year.

The installations are expected to complete by the end of September 2023.