SP Energy Networks Launches Free Online Tool to Boost EV Chargepoint Installations

SP Energy Networks has announced the official launch of the Charge Project’s
ConnectMore Interactive Map (CIM) at the Cenex-LCV2021 conference and
exhibition.

The Charge Project is an initiative from SP Energy Networks and its partners
EA Technology, PTV Group and Smarter Grid Solutions to accelerate the
roll-out of public EV charging infrastructure across Cheshire, Merseyside,
North Shropshire, and North and Mid-Wales. It is also a vital part of SP
Energy Networks’ commitment to help the UK become carbon Net Zero by 2050.

The ConnectMore Interactive Map is a free online tool that allows users –
for example, local councils, site owners, property developers and
chargepoint operators – to quickly and easily identify not only where public
EV charging demand is likely to be high, but also where it can be
accommodated by the electricity network with the minimum need for new cables
or equipment.

Geoff Murphy, lead for the Charge Project at SP Energy Networks, says: “The
CIM is a potential game changer for public chargepoint installation. In the
past, both local authorities and businesses have been put off from investing
in EV charging because establishing expected demand and the feasibility of
installations has often been too time-consuming and complex. The CIM could
change that forever by quickly delivering the hard evidence that’s needed to
get chargepoint projects off the ground.”

The CIM works by evaluating both the potential demand by area for public EV
charging and the likely ease of the connection onto the existing electrical
network in that area. By enabling these two datasets to be viewed together
on an interactive map, the CIM is designed to identify the optimum locations
for EV chargepoint installation and help inform roll-out strategy.

Anticipated EV demand data within the CIM is shown according to four future
scenarios which are based on differing assumptions about EV uptake and
chargepoint availability, and displayed in five-year increments from 2025 to
2050. Users can easily switch between the four scenarios to ascertain how a
particular area or site’s utilisation might vary for different EV and
infrastructure projections.

Dave A. Roberts, Commercial Director at EA Technology, says: “While
everybody agrees that charging must be available for all, the roll-out of
public chargepoints remains slow. The CIM will assist the decision-making
process for new installations by answering questions on expected uptake,
number of chargepoints needed, and the type which would work best. The data
it provides is a forecast rather than a guaranteed outcome, but it will
still significantly enhance the business case for chargepoint
installations.”

The CIM is part of the larger ConnectMore toolset currently being developed
by the Charge Project that will help businesses and local authorities to
identify suitable sites for new chargepoints and estimate the cost of
connecting them to the network.

The CIM will be demonstrated at an LCV2021 workshop event on the morning of
22 September 2021.

More information about the Charge Project and the CIM can be found at:
www.chargeproject.co.uk

About Cenex-LCV2021

Now in its 14th year, LCV2021 is the UK’s premier technology showcasing and
networking event for the low carbon vehicle community. It will take place at
UTAC Millbrook, Bedfordshire, 22-23 September 2021.

About SP Energy Networks’ EV projects

With EV uptake set to increase, the Charge Project is complementary to other
EV industry projects SP Energy Networks is driving. From its EV-Up project,
which uses socio-demographic and housing-stock information to understand the
probability of EV adoption, to Project PACE, which is running in partnership
with the Scottish Government, SP Energy Networks is piloting a DNO-led
delivery model of publicly funded universal EV charging infrastructure, in
recognition of how critical the electrification of transport will be for the
electricity network of the future.

ABOUT SP ENERGY NETWORKS

As a distribution and transmission network operator SP Energy Networks
(SPEN) keeps electricity flowing to over 6m customers across 3.5m homes and
businesses throughout Central & Southern Scotland and Merseyside, Cheshire,
North & Mid-Wales and North Shropshire. We do this through our network of
over 110,000km of power cables and 30,000 substations across our licence
areas and we are investing approximately £7 billion into the electricity
network to create a better future, quicker for our customers and
communities.