The NEC Group and its partner the EV Network have been given planning approval for a major EV charging hub on the West Midlands campus, when completed it will be one of the largest EV charging hubs in Europe in terms of number of charge points on one site.
The Birmingham event centre hub forecourt will contain ultra-fast 300KW DC chargers capable of charging 32 EVs at any one time. Served by 16 high speed DC chargers, each will be able to fully-charge a vehicle in 15-30 minutes, plus a solar canopy will help to generate electricity for the hub.
Maximising on the locational benefits of the campus, the hub will also be accessed via a new entrance from the main campus through road, just off junction 6 of the M42 and close to the M6.
To meet increasing demand, an existing car park will accommodate the hub’s remaining 150 points for 7KW AC-charging. These will be used by NEC Birmingham customers during their time at the venue, which welcomes over seven million visitors per year.
Plans for the hub also include the build of an adjacent, drive-thru national coffee franchise to cater for visitors whilst they wait for their vehicles to charge. This will provide indoor seating and an additional 26 standard parking bays for other patrons.
Set to go live from Autumn 2022, the hub is part of the NEC Group’s long-term sustainability strategy, and also contributes to the UK government’s EV infrastructure strategy. The EV charging hub also opens the opportunity for the NEC Campus to electrify its operational vehicles to support carbon reduction.
“Creating an EV charging hub of this scale is a step change for the UK’s green travel strategy,” said Paul Thandi, CEO of NEC Group.
“We know that many electric vehicle drivers suffer from range anxiety and that this is a barrier to others switching to greener modes of transport. Providing greater reliability and access to high quality charge points in partnership with bp pulse at a key part of the UK road network, is a great move forward and one we are proud to support.”
