The UK is one of numerous countries that have pledged to phase out internal combustion-powered vehicles in favor of electric vehicles (“EVs”). In summer 2019, then Prime Minister Theresa May signed into law the groundbreaking target of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. However, one factor that has consistently stood in the way of widespread EV adoption, especially in the less-affluent boroughs of London, is poor charging infrastructure.
To help combat this, global ride-hailing giant Uber Technologies (NYSE: UBER) has pledged to invest more than £5m in public, electric-vehicle charging infrastructure. Uber’s analysis shows that the concentration of public EV chargers is far higher in more affluent boroughs such as Kensington and Westminster compared to boroughs where its drivers typically drive.
The firm also found that compared to residents of southwest London, drivers in boroughs such as Tower Hamlets and Newham were less likely to live in houses with driveways that allow them to charge EVs overnight. Although Uber concedes that the investment is only a fraction of what is needed, it will announce the investment as part of its efforts to highlight the imbalance across the capital in the installation of charging stations.
The £5m in funding will be invested by 2023 in areas that lack the charging infrastructure neededto support electric vehicles, says Uber’s regional general manager Jamie Heywood. Uber is looking to work with the borough councils in Brent, Newham and Tower Hamlets to decide how the funding will be divided up and spent. “Drivers consistently tell us that having reliable, accessible charging near where they live is a key factor when deciding if they should switch to electric,” Heywood says. “If we address this challenge for professional drivers now, it will help create a mass market for electric vehicles in the years to come. As we all know, this is critical if the U is to achieve our goal to be net-zero.”
At the moment, only about 1,000 of the 45,000 vehicles Uber operates in London are electric, a long way from its goal of electrifying its entire London fleet. Still, the firm is making steady progress in achieving that goal.
By charging its customers a clean-air fee at 15% extra per mile, Uber was able to raise more than £100m to help its drivers transition to electric cars. Earlier this year, Uber also struck a deal with Nissan to supply 2,000 discounted Leafs to London drivers.
Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE) is an interesting firm in the EV space that you should watch. The company is in the final stages of completing a merger with Mullen Technologies Inc., a California-based EV company that has been developing, designing and manufacturing lightweight, high-end cars for decades. It will be intriguing to follow how the new entity formed from a financial services company and an automaker pans out.
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