Char.gy Raises £35 Million to Broaden UK's On-Street EV Charging Infrastructure

Image Credit: Char.gy

Through the government-backed Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund, Zouk Capital has made its third investment in Char.gy, a UK-based electric vehicle (EV) charging network. This new £35 million infusion increases the fund's total commitment to Char.gy from £65 million to £100 million, significantly bolstering its mission to expand its on-street EV charging facilities nationwide.

Announced this morning, the investment is strategically timed to capitalise on the rapid expansion of the EV market. Char.gy collaborates with local councils to set up public charging stations, explicitly targeting households without private charging access, facilitating an easier transition to EV use.

With the latest funding, Char.gy plans to escalate its network from 3,000 chargers to an ambitious target of 100,000 by 2030. George Ridd, a partner at Zouk Capital, highlighted the investment's critical timing, noting the "pivotal time" in the market witnessing "exponential growth."

"Collaborating with dedicated partners like char.gy allows local authorities to provide accessible, reliable charging infrastructure to their residents now and into the future," he said. "Well-capitalised providers like Char.gy ensure that councils can depend on consistent, long-term investments, which are crucial for sustainable infrastructure development."

The Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund has backed Char.gy in three separate funding rounds, commencing with an initial £6.4 million in 2021 and followed by a subsequent round in 2022, bringing the total investment to £65 million.

"The latest funding will help us accelerate our ambitious growth plans and will be directed towards the rollout of more charge points across the next five years," said John Lewis, Char.gy CEO. "We are here to partner with local councils, providing the expertise and scale needed to drive the UK's green agenda forward."

In related industry developments, LG Electronics, a powerhouse in South Korean electronics, has announced a strategic partnership with ChargePoint, a leader in electric vehicle charging solutions based in California. This collaboration, revealed yesterday, will commence with ChargePoint supplying software to manage LG's charging units, which will start later this summer.

The alliance aims to extend beyond software integration, with potential expansions planned to enhance ChargePoint's network, which currently includes over 306,000 charging points. The partnership could see LG's charging solutions deployed in locations where ChargePoint lacks the ideal hardware setup.

"LG shares ChargePoint's commitment to enabling a world-class charging experience for all EV drivers, regardless of make, model or connector type," said Rick Wilmer, CEO of ChargePoint. "Together, we will develop market-leading EV charging solutions and pursue further opportunities to push the envelope thanks to our combined engineering expertise." 

Moreover, the two companies are exploring synergies between ChargePoint's charger management capabilities and LG's energy storage technologies and linking LG's expansive smart home platform with ChargePoint's residential charging systems. This integration signifies a pivotal move towards innovating and refining the infrastructure essential for the burgeoning electric vehicle market.