Total, the French oil and gas company, is diversifying its portfolio through to acquisition of Source London’s EV charging network.
It seems that fossil fuel companies are clamoring to get into the electric vehicle charging market as fast as possible, especially as the world accelerates the transition to e-mobility. Both BP and Shell have invested heavily in expanding their EV charging networks, and now Total is following suit.
This is not Total’s first foray into the EV charge point market, with the firm already operating networks in Amsterdam and Brussels. However, Source London is London’s largest EV charging network, meaning the acquisition is massively expanding Total’s stake in the market.
Source London currently operates over 1,600 on-street charge points in the capital, although they have regularly come under fire for their per minute charging, which many EV owners deem as unfair compared to per kWh charging. While Total hasn’t committed to changing the pricing structure, the company has noted that it will supply 100% renewable energy to power the charging network.
While Total is still a small player in the EV charging market, especially compared to the 50,000 chargers in BP’s network in Europe and 140,000 charge points that Shell Recharge customers can access, the company wants to be operating over 150,000 EV charge points by 2025. The company has yet to join calls to accelerate the ban on diesel and petrol cars unlike its competitors, however.
Total will complete its acquisition of Source London by the end of 2020 for an undisclosed sum.