Gridserve opens new Gatwick site with 30 EV chargers

Harper said: “We're not just providing electric vehicle charging but also looking at the power side. We're supplying net-zero energy. We build solar farms, for example. 

“In the UK, for every acre of land, if you build one solar farm, you can generate more than a million miles of EV charging per year. And not only that, but we've also discovered that it gets generated at pretty much the same time as you need it, because we’re using our own charging network.”

The Gatwick hub is said to bring a five-fold increase in the availability of chargers at the airport's South terminal. It's equipped with an Amazon grocery shop that does without staff, a Costa, meeting rooms, and toilet facilities.

A helpline is available 24 hours a day and Gridserve's on-site 'gurus' can help customers during working hours.

It also joins the firm's other forecourts in being equipped with a simulator that allows customers to virtually sample an EV if they're looking to buy one.

Harper said: “When you turn up here in a petrol car, it feels a little bit old-school. That's a very different level of experience that we've been able to achieve with sites like this, versus only a few years ago, when people said that they need the experience to be as good as petrol stations. But we think we want better. We want better across the UK.” 

The site isn't exempt from the airport's parking restrictions, meaning users will be able to stay for only one hour at a time to avoid a fine, regardless of the charge state of their EV.

Gridserve has promised that any profits from overstay fines will go towards planting trees.

Construction has begun on the brand's fourth hub, located at the Knebworth estate in Stevenage. Plans have also been confirmed to expand the offering to Scotland and Wales, with a site confirmed for Rutherglen, outside Glasgow.

Gridserve will also introduce 1MW charging for heavy goods vehicles by next year, although most will begin at 360kW before power is increased over a three-year period. They're likely to be constructed at the firm’s most-used sites, such as motorway service stations.

Harper said: “The project runs between now and just over a year from now. So we will launch within the next year or so, basically, but we're working on the first solutions right now – many of them.”

Q&A: Toddington Harper, CEO, Gridserve

What's your reaction to the UK government missing its target for the roll-out of public EV chargers?

“It's very complex. The government target was very helpful in aligning us and all of our partners to really achieve a goal. My view now is that in terms of what we've already achieved and in addition to what's coming, the charging on the motorway network is probably the best charging network now in the country.”

Where do you stand on battery-swapping technology?

“My expectation is that within this year, cars will be turning up that can charge at 350kW. And if you can charge a vehicle in five minutes or a comparable time as it would take to swap the battery, then why would you need to go through all of that additional complexity? We'll wait and see if it makes sense.”