Skip to main content

EGEB: More than 350,000 UK homes will have EV home chargers by 2025

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

  • More than 350,000 UK homes will be fitted with an EV home charger by 2025 as EV popularity surges.
  • British Gas makes the largest EV order for a commercial fleet in the UK with Vauxhall.
  • If you live in the US and you think your home electricity bill is higher, you’re not imagining things.

The Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB): A daily technical, financial, and political review/analysis of important green energy news.

Home EV chargers in the UK

More than 350,000 UK homes will be fitted with electric vehicle chargers by 2025 as EV uptake surges, according to UK EV charging company Andersen.

Around 1 million electric vehicles are expected to be registered on UK roads by 2025, so of course home chargers will follow. Analysis of sales trends by Andersen using Department for Transport electric vehicle homecharge scheme data has found that 362,270 wall boxes could be installed in UK driveways and garages over the next five years based on current installation rates, adding to the current number of 120,000.

This is because the number of electric vehicle models in the UK market is predicted to rise from 60 to over 176 by the end of 2020, 214 models in 2021, and 333 models in 2025.

Jerome Faissat, commercial director of Andersen, said:

Over the past three months, pollution has fallen in our cities and we’ve enjoyed the cleanest air we’ve had in decades, and it’s inspired many to rethink the way they get around. We’re seeing people vote with their feet — as they make the switch to an electric car, bike, or scooter.

Going electric is more than an ethical choice. It’s a choice to embrace the future.

British Gas buys Vauxhall EVs

British Gas has ordered 1,000 of the new Vauxhall electric Vivaro-e vans for its engineers — the largest EV order for a commercial fleet in the UK. They’ll arrive over the next 12 months.

British Gas has the third-largest commercial fleet in the country and has committed to being 100% electric by 2030. Centrica, which owns British Gas, will electrify its fleet of 12,000 vehicles by 2030. It will place further orders with Vauxhall as soon as more EVs are available. This may include the Combo-e, which is expected to be available from summer 2021.

British Gas will targeting areas where lowering emissions is more urgent and where vans need replacing. The company’s engineers will install chargers at the drivers’ homes. The company is currently upskilling engineers in EV charging and is accelerating EV adoption for homes and businesses with charger installs and EV tariffs.

British Gas, which supplies both natural gas and electricity, has a future net zero pledge. This includes the following:

  • Be net zero by 2050 and announce its pathway to achieve that by 2030.
  • Help customers reduce emissions by 25%
  • Deliver 7GW of flexible, distributed, and low-carbon technologies

US energy bills climb this summer

Renewable energy company Arcadia Power has released a study that explores how our carbon footprints may have shrunk during the pandemic, but our household fossil-fuel usage has increased.

Arcadia looked at 12 months of energy bill data from around 10,000 of its members across 13 large US metropolitan areas. It compared usage rates and energy bill totals before and after nationwide pandemic lockdowns began, factoring in average yearly weather fluctuations by city.

The company says a drastic increase in energy costs is expected in all 13 cities this summer.

Philadelphia, New York, and Boston may see some of the highest at-home energy bill increases in the nation, with conservative estimates of $37, $34, and $27 in energy bill spikes, respectively.

West Coast cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Riverside, and Seattle will likely see bill increases between $2 and $20.

Electrek asked why there is a disparity between US East Coast and West Coast cities. Arcadia’s CEO and founder Kiran Bhatraju replied:

In denser cities, there’s simply less room for individuals to go outside without running the risk of bumping into other people. These are also areas in which the coronavirus pandemic hit the hardest, so stay at home orders are either still in effect or lifting more slowly.

It is our hope that heightened interest and concern over energy consumption at home and energy bills will draw attention to the importance of fossil fuels still being pervasive in the US electricity mix and the need to support more clean energy getting added to the power grid.

Arcadia blogged about 10 easy ways to save energy at home here.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Bluetti solar 2000W Power Station
Stay up to date with the latest content by subscribing to Electrek on Google News. You’re reading Electrek— experts who break news about Tesla, electric vehicles, and green energy, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow Electrek on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our YouTube channel for the latest reviews.

Comments

Author

Avatar for Michelle Lewis Michelle Lewis

Michelle Lewis is a writer and editor on Electrek and an editor on DroneDJ, 9to5Mac, and 9to5Google. She lives in White River Junction, Vermont. She has previously worked for Fast Company, the Guardian, News Deeply, Time, and others. Message Michelle on Twitter or at michelle@9to5mac.com. Check out her personal blog.