Shell converts London petrol station into an electric car hub with renovated Fulham site able to charge nine vehicles at a time

 

·         
Fulham
fuel station is now Shell\’s first dedicated EV charging hub in the world as
part of a new pilot scheme

·         
It replaced petrol and diesel pumps with 175kWh
ultra-rapid devices providing up to 80% charge in 10 mins

·         
EV drivers will be charged 49p per kWh to charge
up with the hub powered by 100% renewable energy

·         
Bosses said the London site provides a \’glimpse
into the future of mobility with EV sales already booming

Oil giant Shell has converted its
Fulham petrol station in West London into a dedicated electric vehicle charging
hub as part of a pilot scheme, which is the first of its kind globally for the
company.

It has stripped the site entirely
of its petrol and diesel pumps and replaced them with nine \’high-powered\’
ultra-rapid 175kW devices, which can charge the latest models to 80 percent
battery capacity with 10 minutes – around three times faster than conventional
50kW rapid chargers across the country.

Officially opened last month, the
cost to charge a vehicle is 49p per kWh, with the hub powered by 100 percent
renewable energy and EV drivers restricted to a maximum one hour stay to ensure
there is a good level of device availability.

EV owners waiting for their
battery packs to be replenished can take advantage of the location\’s all-new
comfortable seating area, which offers free Wi-Fi to customers.

The Fulham site also has a new
Costa Coffee cafe installed inside as well as a Little Waitrose & Partners
grocery section.

The charging hub\’s structure is
also in-line with Shell\’s sustainable strategy, with a canopy built from sheets
of timber and houses solar panels that contribute to powering the site.

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The shop is also constructed
using glass double glazing with \’high insulating properties to ensure it is
heated efficiently. 

With the 2030 ban on sales of new
petrol and diesel cars on the horizon and demand for EVs already booming,
traditional fuel retailers operated by the massive oil firms face the reality
of needing to shift the application of some of their filling stations –
especially those in urban areas where take-up of electric cars is expected to
accelerate fastest.

This will likely mean either modifying
existing fuel stations into charging hubs or decommissioning the area entirely
to make land available for buildings or other structures. 

Shell currently has EV charging
facilities at over 100 of its fuel forecourts across the country, though the
Fulham location is the first to be exclusive to electric car owners rather than
being in addition to petrol and diesel pumps.

The company announced last year
plans to install 50,000 on-street chargers by 2025 through its subsidiary
Ubitricity and aims to put 800 EV points in car parks at around 100 branches
of Waitrose in the next three years.   

István Kapitány, Shell\’s global
executive vice president for mobility, said: \’EV drivers are looking for a
charging experience that is as fast, convenient and comfortable as possible.
This is exactly what Shell Fulham aims to offer. 

\’It joins our growing network of
Shell Recharge sites at forecourts and other locations, our Ubitricity
on-street charging network, and our Shell Recharge Solutions for homes and businesses
as we increasingly help EV drivers to charge wherever they need it. It also
gives us all a glimpse into the future of mobility.\’ 

The 49p per kWh cost to plug in
at the Fulham hub is on par with rival ultra-rapid public charging providers,
such as BP Pulse (50p per kWh for contactless use of its 150kWh devices without a subscription).

Shell says the devices are
exclusively pay-as-you-go with no connection charges or subscription costs, and
customers can use contactless payments.

Transport Minister Trudy Harrison
said: \’It\’s fantastic to see Shell leading the way with their brand-new
charging hub, offering EV drivers an easy and rapid charging experience. 

\’With more people making the
switch to EVs than ever before, this is exactly the type of facility we need to
help make the transition as simple as possible for drivers up and down the
country. 

\’This Government has committed
£2.5bn to vehicle grants and infrastructure to support the switch to EVs. 

\’In addition to Government
efforts, it is equally encouraging to see businesses support the EV transition
– and Shell\’s new hub is a brilliant example of the UK\’s huge effort to go green and reaches our important net-zero targets.\’ 

With more than 130 full or hybrid
electric vehicle models now available to buyers, EV sales in the UK are
accelerating rapidly. 

In December 2021, 27,705 EVs were
sold – over 9,000 of them Tesla Model 3s – making up more than a quarter (26
percent) of all new registrations that month.

\’For sales and utilization of EVs
to continue accelerating, investment in charging infrastructure will likewise
need to grow apace,\’ Shell said.