Electric briefs: Latest from Venson, InstaVolt, Sainsbury’s Smart Charge, Swarco E Connect, Hive, Electric Car Scheme, EDF and Pod Point

Venson appoints Hypervolt as first official home charging partner 

Venson Automotive Solutions is creating a partner panel of charging providers, with Hypervolt the first to be officially announced. 

The new panel of providers will meet the needs of fleet operators’ charging requirements, spanning from home and office charging to depot charging.

In addition, Venson is also seeking to cater to a rising demand from fleet operators for short term charging solutions that can be rented for situations such as depot charging when trialling EV vans, and income generating solutions such as offering the charge points for use by third parties such as the public, when not being used by the fleet.

The appointment of Hypervolt will see it supply Venson’s car fleet customers with a proprietary single-phase home charging platform, the Hypervolt Home 3 Pro.

Simon Staton, client management director for Venson, said: “Hypervolt’s near perfect Trustpilot ranking and 365 days-a-year tech support are standout credentials, with its ‘customer first’ approach to service closely mirroring our own.”

To get to know Hypervolt inside out, Venson staff will take Hypervolt’s certified training courses and be kept up to date with developments through webinars, and other events.

Staton concluded: “As we continue to bring additional official charging partners on-board, we will be applying the same extensive procurement process. By doing so we ensure we can offer fleet operators’ robust solutions that help manage the operational requirements of a ULEV fleet now and into the future.”

EDF and Pod Point launch EV charger and tariff bundle  

EDF and Pod Point have launched an electric vehicle (EV) home charger and tariff bundle, to reduce upfront costs.

The new ‘Pod Point Plug and Power’ bundle offers drivers the ability to purchase a Pod Point Solo 3S charger for an initial payment of £499 (compared to £1,099).

The remaining cost for the charger is spread over two years and integrated into the tariff, which gives customers cheap overnight rates, with five hours of off-peak electricity between 12-5am to power both their home and car, priced at 8.49p per kWh.

Rich Hughes, director of retail at EDF said: “We’re always looking for ways to make sustainable choices more convenient and affordable, so this bundle is a great option for drivers to be able to make the switch to electric driving, with lower upfront costs.”

Melanie Lane, CEO at Pod Point, added: “We’ve seen dedicated EV tariffs become a key consideration for drivers, as well as the need for a home charger that gives them great value, and so we integrated both elements and launched the Plug and Power bundle, making EV driving even easier and more affordable.”

The Solo 3S comes with a 5-year warranty and standard installation is included. The Pod Point app also allows users manage their home charging conveniently from their phone.

To be eligible for Pod Point Plug and Power, customers are required to have a smart meter and be opted into half hourly meter readings.

Sainsbury’s Smart Charge signs Allstar as business roaming partner  

Allstar has been selected by Sainsbury’s as its first B2B roaming partner for its electric vehicle (EV) charging service, Smart Charge.

Allstar’s customers will now be able to charge at 58 EV hubs at Sainsbury’s stores nationwide. Drivers will also be able to collect Nectar points as they pay to recharge their EVs. Until October 25, Smart Charge is offering 10 times the Nectar points available for those charging for the first time.

Patrick Dunne, Sainsbury’s director of property, procurement and EV ventures, said: “This is a critical next step in our ambition to make EV charging simple and accessible to all, giving a whole new sector of EV fleet drivers easy access to our network of over 475 bays at more than 58 locations up and down the country.” 

Paul Holland, managing director for UK/ANZ fleet at Corpay, including UK brand Allstar, added: “It is through innovative partnerships like Sainsbury’s Smart Charge, that we are aligning with like-minded, forward thinking brands that share our vision for a fast, convenient and accessible EV charging world for all the nation’s drivers.”

Swarco E Connect rebrands to the Evolt Network with a new app

Swarco E Connect, one of the UK’s first ever electric vehicle (EV) charging networks, is being relaunched and rebranded as the Evolt Network.

The rebrand follows a consultation with customers and drivers and the development of a new mobile app and website by Evolt Charging, part of the international Swarco Group of Companies.

Offered as part of Evolt Charging’s turnkey service for Charge Point Operators (CPOs), hosts and owners, the new app has a series of new features to deliver a further enhanced customer experience, complemented by a fresh new look and feel, which is also reflected in the design cues of the new optimised website.

Access to all former E.Connect chargers will continue via the Evolt Network app, and any existing RFID cards will remain active and fully functional at all future Evolt Network sites.

Users will be able to start a charge via the app, track the power they are drawing, the cost of the session, and start/stop the charge as needed.

Billing is also simplified with easy to access links to invoices and receipts.

As well as the new app, the E.Connect website has been refreshed and updated to reflect the new brand identity.

InstaVolt now offer 100% green electricity from Octopus Energy

The UK’s largest ultra-rapid electric car charging operator, InstaVolt, is now being supplied with 100% green electricity through Octopus Energy for Business. 

Octopus supplies around a third of the electricity on Britain’s public charging network already - and this deal makes InstaVolt Octopus’ largest charge point operator customer. 

As part of this, InstaVolt will take part in Octopus’ groundbreaking ‘Plunge Pricing’ scheme. This innovation by Octopus’ electric car charging platform Electroverse enables drivers to get cheaper public charging at times when green energy’s abundant.

InstaVolt joined Octopus Electroverse’s revolutionary ‘one card, one app’ model last year. Electroverse is now Europe’s largest consumer electric vehicle (EV) charging platform, where drivers can plug into 850,000 chargers from 950 brands in 40 countries. 

InstaVolt’s chargers can be found at over 800 locations nationwide in the UK. 

Zoisa North-Bond, CEO of Octopus Energy for Business, said: “Powering InstaVolt’s ultra-rapid chargers with 100% green electricity means drivers can top up with the power of the sunshine and breeze.

“With our ‘Plunge Pricing’ innovation, when green energy is abundant and prices drop, InstaVolt customers can charge up at these times and save money too.”   

Delvin Lane, CEO of InstaVolt, added: “By powering our chargers with Octopus’ green energy, we can further deliver on our promise to provide 100% renewable energy across our charging network.”

Electric Car Scheme partners with OVO to offer cheaper charging

The Electric Car Scheme has announced a partnership with OVO to make EV driving cheaper and making the switch to electric cars more appealing.

The partnership with OVO initially offers both new and existing customers of The Electric Car Scheme 6,000 miles worth of free charging, followed by access to OVO’s Charge Anytime specialist EV tariff add-on.

The EV tariff add-on enables users with a smart meter and home EV charger to charge their electric vehicle (EV) at a special rate of 7p/kWh, which equates to around 2p per mile.

CEO of The Electric Car Scheme, Thom Groot (pictured), said: “This partnership offers our customers nearly a year’s worth of free driving, followed by some of the most competitive charging costs available on the market.”

Alex Thwaites, director of EV at OVO, added: “EVs play a vital role in our collective ambition to transition to a zero-carbon energy future and we’re committed to helping make the transition for our customers as easy as possible.

“Salary sacrifice schemes are one of the most popular and cost-effective ways for drivers to make the switch to an EV and our partnership with The Electric Car Scheme means customers can access the lowest rate for their home charging.”

Hive and Zapmap announce strategic partnership

Eco-tech expert Hive has partnered with Zapmap in an effort to make at-home and on-the-road charging more accessible and affordable.

To mark the first phase of the partnership, starting next year, new Hive EV customers will receive £20 of charging credit to use at Zap-Pay enabled EV chargers. Customers will be able to pay digitally or via a charge card.

The offer is part of Hive and Zapmap’s shared mission to make it as simple and stress-free to charge on the road as it is at home.

Longer-term, the partnership is set to explore bringing together the Hive app and Zapmap’s digital platform to offer further customer benefits, including solutions for Hive customers to track their at-home and public charging within the Hive app.

Dan Rosenfield, managing director of Hive, said: “Through our strategic partnership with Zapmap and our investments in the Hive app, we are empowering EV drivers to have complete control over their electric driving experience.”

Melanie Shufflebotham, Co-founder and COO of Zapmap, added: “Hive customers can enjoy the benefits of EVs, stress-free, and we're really excited to continue to expand the service to give them access to the best priced charging, within the simplest experience, across the broadest range of locations.”