North Lanarkshire has announced the new costs for use of its electric vehicle charging network – which will be introduced from tomorrow.
Drivers will now pay 27p per kilowatt hour for use of the area’s 96 public standard and fast chargers, and 40p per kilowatt hour for its 26 rapid chargers, which will also have an overstay fee of £30 after one hour.
The tariffs were announced on the council’s social media channels and on the Chargeplace Scotland website, and will come into effect on January 4.
Councillors unanimously agreed in November to begin charging for use of the power points, after hearing that the running cost for 2022-2023 is forecast to reach £852,000 amid soaring usage and energy bills.
North Lanarkshire’s tariffs mirror those of neighbouring South Lanarkshire, which similarly began charging for use of the public network in November.
The cost incorporates the price of electricity plus network maintenance and operation; it will be regularly reviewed “as the wider cost of electricity fluctuates” and is intended to compare to the price of home charging for the 7kW and 22kW points, and to existing private sector 50kW rapid charging facilities.
Chargeplace Scotland noted in an online update that North Lanarkshire was among 17 power point operators who have this month “taken the decision to introduce or update their tariff to ensure their charging estate can be maintained, remain accessible and financially sustainable”.
The organisation added that the decision allows “continued investment in line with the growth of the network”, and added: “We advise drivers to check local signage, [our] website map and tariff list before connecting to avoid any unexpected charges.”
North Lanarkshire’s public charging network trebled in size through joint initiative Project Pace and has seen usage rise from 253 motorists carrying out 1259 charging sessions in July 2021 to 4071 “unique drivers” using chargers 18,075 times to supply 351,347 kilowatt hours of energy 13 months later.
This year’s projected electricity bill for the network is nearly 15 times higher than in 2020-2021, and environment convener Helen Loughran said: “The cost to the council of the energy being used cannot be sustained.
“By recovering the energy and running costs from drivers, we will be able to attract further investment to install more charging points to meet the increasing demand.”
She added that the “rapidly rising number of drivers using the network indicates more people are choosing electric vehicles – this is a positive development which will help reduce carbon emissions and contribute to the council’s target of net zero by 2030”.
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