Official opening of EV Fast-Charging Station
Thursday 6th June saw the official opening of Desco's EV fast-charging station project in Sunderland.
The new charging station is the UK’s first purpose-built high-power fast charging station, operated by Fastned and owned by the North East Joint Transport Committee and funded through the Go Ultra Low Cities Grant and the European Regional Development Fund.
Within the station there are four 50 kW fast chargers and two 175 kW fast chargers that are enabled for 350 kW charging, the fastest charging rate in the UK.
The chargers have been designed to accommodate all fully-electric vehicles, including Tesla models, providing enough energy for 350 miles of travel in 20 minutes.
Initially, charging at the station will be FREE for drivers, though an introductory price will be imposed later in 2019 when the payment system is activated. Charging and paying will then be possible with a charge card, debit or credit card, Apple Pay, Android Pay and a new Fastned app.
We are pleased that we have built this first Fastned fast charging station in the United Kingdom in cooperation with NECA, and that local and regional electric drivers can now use this charging facility. Sunderland is a symbolic city for electrical driving, since the factory where the Nissan Leaf is produced is located here. Nissan was one of the first EV manufacturers to launch with the Leaf; an affordable, mass-produced electric car.
Michael Langezaal, co-founder and chief executive of Fastned