Electric Car Charging Posts To Surpass Gas Stations In The U.K. By 2020

A report from Japanese auto manufacturer Nissan concluded that charging stations for electric autos will surpass fuel stations in the United Kingdom (UK) by August 2020.

As reported on Wednesday by edie.net, an average of 129 British gas stations have been lost each year since December 2005. In contrast, during that same time, approximately 911 electric vehicle (EV) charging sites have been added each year. Therefore, Nissan believes around 7898 EV charging stations will be found throughout the UK in four years, which is twenty-nine more than the forecasted number of gas stations.

“As EV sales take off, the charging infrastructure is keeping pace and paving the way for convenient all-electric driving,” Edward Jones, EV manager of Nissan Motors division in the UK said. “Combine that with constant improvements in our battery performance and we believe the tipping point for mass EV uptake is upon us.”

An average of one electric car is registered in the UK every thirteen minutes, per information from the Go Ultra Low campaign spearheaded by the British government and car industry. The organization thinks EV will become the main form of propulsion for autos in the UK by 2027.

In addition, a recent Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) noted the promising impact of the EV industry on the British economy. Connected and autonomous EVs could generate as much as US$67 billion per year by 2030 and could lead to 320,000 newly created industry jobs.

“As with similar breakthrough technologies, the adoption of electric vehicles should follow an ‘S-curve’ of demand. A gradual uptake from early adopters accelerates to a groundswell of consumers buying electric vehicles just as they would any other powertrain,” Jones added.

Nissan’s interest in the EV market is looking beyond Britain on a more global scale with its Leaf car serving as the world’s best-selling electric auto. Autoblog mentioned that Nissan Future Lab has partnered with the United States Air Force to examine the viability of EV use to support the electric grid. One possibility is the use of Leaf cars to store excess electricity created by power plants and then transfer that power back during periods of high energy demand.

By Erwin Cifuentes for Oilprice.com

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