Pod Point has successfully installed electric vehicle charging stations at 200 Tesco stores across the UK, with a superstore in Chester being the 200th.
Tesco entered a partnership with Pod Point and Volkswagen back in 2018, with the intention of offering the largest free retail charging network for EVs in the UK. So far, the company has installed charging stations at 200 stores, although that number is expected to climb three-fold in the coming years.
Pod Point has largely continued installing EV chargers throughout the UK’s Covid-19 lockdown, although the pace of installations have slowed in recent months. While 12 Tesco stores received an EV charger from Pod Point in March 2020, just one store was hooked up to the network for the entire month of May.
The choice to install free charging at Tesco stores across the country has been well received by customers, with Pod Point having seen its stations used more than 150,000 times over the past 18 months. The company says that it has provided a combined 669MW of power to UK electric vehicles thanks to the Tesco partnership.
While Pod Point intends to install charging stations at 600 Tesco stores across the UK, the company currently has some notable areas where it’s lacking chargers. No Tesco stores in the county of Kent have received a Pod Point charger as of the time of writing, nor have any made their way to Norfolk. Both counties represent large areas where there’s a severe lack of EV charging at Tesco stores.
Erik Fairbairn, founder and CEO of Pod Point, noted, “Our partnership with Tesco and Volkswagen is making it easier for drivers to go electric and will help speed up the transition to EVs.
“Vehicle electrification is one of the most powerful ways to stop travel damaging the earth.”
Jason Tarry, Tesco CEO UK & ROI, added, “We’re now well on our way to achieving our ambition of installing more than 2,400 EV charging bays across 600 Tesco stores.
“The 200th store is a landmark moment as we get back up and running with this programme after the Covid-19 pandemic meant we had to delay our plans.
“Providing customers with charging points offers them a sustainable choice and giving them the opportunity to charge their car for free while they shop is a little help to make this easier.”
Sarah Cox, head of marketing for Volkswagen UK, concluded, “It’s fantastic that we’ve reached another milestone in our partnership with Tesco and Pod Point. There are now 200 stores with chargers that drivers of any electric vehicle can use for free.
“As the partnership continues, and more stores roll out new chargers, we are really proud to be breaking down barriers to EV ownership and demonstrating to people that living with an EV is easy.”
