Ulster University and East Border Region have announced the appointment of EasyGo to install and operate 24 rapid EV chargers at locations across the Belfast City Council, Ards and North Down Borough and Newry, Mourne and Down district council areas.
These new chargers will be installed as part of the FASTER Project which has received €6.4 million EU funding to support the transition to electric vehicles and sustainable transport use across Western Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland (Border Region). Match funding for the project has been provided by the Department for Infrastructure (Northern Ireland) and the Department for Transport (Republic of Ireland) and Transport Scotland.
Initial site visits for the new installations are already underway and chargers are expected to be operational in the coming weeks in what will be a welcome boost to the public charging network in Northern Ireland, the partners said.
Professor Neil Hewitt of Ulster University said:
Ulster University has been involved with the expansion of the EV charging network in Northern Ireland, through the FASTER project in conjunction with our Northern Ireland Local Authority partners. Through this partnership we have identified a series of car parks adjacent to leisure centres that have the accessibility, security, and electricity supply to facilitate one or more rapid charge points.
Gerry Cash, Director, EasyGo, added:
We look forward to working on this project to expand the EV fast charging network in Northern Ireland…We are the first private provider on the island of Ireland to make public DC Chargers available. Once this project is complete, EasyGo will become the largest EV charging network in Northern Ireland, with nearly 5,000 chargers available on our network across the island of Ireland.
Councillor Terry Andrews, Chairman of East Border Region, the lead partner on the FASTER Project, welcomed the appointment of the infrastructure provider:
EBR is delighted to lead this innovative and genuinely cross border project which will see essential EV infrastructure installed in Ireland, the border counties and Scotland. Electric vehicles are an essential component of the strategy to reduce emissions and help improve local air quality. The FASTER project will undoubtedly contribute to this aim.
