Thurrock Council is to benefit from the rollout of over 4,000 new electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints.
The infrastructure is being delivered through the local authority’s 15-year contract with EV chargepoint operator, Zest, with support from the Government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund.
Roughly 98% of the funding for the project will be provided by Zest, with the scheme aiming to promote EV uptake across the borough by improving access to chargepoints.
According to Zest, the move will see that households without off-street parking and areas underserved by public charging are given precedence when determining locations for the infrastructure.
A combination of lamp-post chargers, fast AC and rapid DC chargepoints are to be used in the scheme, which is expected to boost the regional economy as well as local communities.
The Zest network will also receive a transfer of a further 35 chargepoints that had been provided by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles’ On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS).
Robin Heap, CEO of Zest, said: ‘Thurrock is taking a proactive approach to building the resilient infrastructure needed for the transition to electric vehicles. By combining targeted public funding with long-term private investment, this partnership will deliver a reliable and equitable charging network that supports communities across the borough.’
