Liberty Global sets sights on sparking on-street EV charging

Liberty Global is utilising the network infrastructure of its UK subsidiary Virgin Media with the aim of improving on-street electric vehicle (EV) charging. The telecoms company says it will utilise Virgin Media’s 40,000 powered street cabinets and 170,000 km of ducts as part of a partnership with Innovate UK. Jason Simpson, Liberty’s vice president global energy and utilities, says the street cabinets allow the company to “look beyond traditional uses of telecom infrastructure and make a positive impact
November 15, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

Liberty Global is utilising the network infrastructure of its UK subsidiary Virgin Media with the aim of improving on-street electric vehicle (EV) charging.

The telecoms company says it will utilise Virgin Media’s 40,000 powered street cabinets and 170,000 km of ducts as part of a partnership with Innovate UK.

Jason Simpson, Liberty’s vice president global energy and utilities, says the street cabinets allow the company to “look beyond traditional uses of telecom infrastructure and make a positive impact on the environment and in communities throughout the UK”.

“By bringing more EV chargers and associated connectivity to Britain’s streets, we are making a significant contribution to Innovate UK’s ambition to encourage more people to buy electric cars,” he adds.

Over the next 18 months, Liberty is to deploy and operate 1,200 charging sockets across the UK. The rollout of EV charging stations which use Virgin Media’s connectivity will build a scalable charging network, the company adds.

Liberty is taking part in the project as part of the Virgin Media Park & Charge consortium whose members include delivery companies such as Vattenfall, tech firms like Cenex and 2223 Loughborough University. Other members include councils in Oxfordshire, London’s Hammersmith & Fulham and Belfast.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Government of Canada expands EV charging stations in New Brunswick
    January 16, 2018
    To provide Canadians with more options to drive clean, the country’s government has announced a $450,000 (£262,000) investment in NB Power’s eCharge Network, adding nine new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations to the current ten, in New Brunswick. The transaction has been announced by Serge Cormier, member of parliament for Tracadie–Bathurst on behalf of the honourable Jim Carr, minister of natural resources. Cormier also confirmed that an additional $197,500 (£115,000) from the federal gas tax fund
    Read More
  • PG&E to launch EV pilot in San Joaquin
    July 2, 2018
    Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) will launch an electric vehicle (EV) pilot to help San Joaquin Regional Transit District prepare for electric transportation. The California-based bus operator intends to have a fully-electric fleet by 2025. PG&E says it will carry out tests to make EVs more available to transit agencies while connecting underserved communities with clean energy transportation options. Under the agreement, PG&E will analyse and compare charging at various times of the day using diff
    Read More
  • Oxford trials Urban Electric Networks’ pop-up charge point for EVs
    September 5, 2018
    Oxford City Council in the UK is trialling technology start-up Urban Electric Networks’ pop-up charge point in a £600,000 initiative to encourage UK residents to make the switch to electric vehicles (EVs). Urban Electric says its UEone is a charging solution for households who have to park cars on-street in residential parking zones. The project is co-funded by Innovate UK, following a successful £474,000 bid led by Urban Electric.
    Read More
  • Itron creates North America ‘smart community’ challenge
    February 18, 2020
    Technology company Itron is accepting submissions from hardware and software vendors in North America for a ‘smart community’ challenge. 
    Read More

Highlighted Content