The most powerful electric vehicle (EV) charging hub in Scotland, installed by SSE, was opened this week by Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Fiona Hyslop.
The Myrekirk Roundabout site in Dundee will feature a total of 24 ultra-rapid charging bays with a total capacity of almost two and a half megawatts, the equivalent of 68,311 gallons of petrol.
Eight of the bays will be powered by charge units of up to 360-kilowatts, capable of delivering up to 60 miles of range in just three minutes. The hub is the first publicly accessible location anywhere in Scotland to feature charge units this powerful, says SSE.
The remaining 16 bays will be fitted with 150-kilowatt charge units, sufficient to deliver just under eight miles of range per minute of charging to a standard family car.
Additionally, the project will feature a green roof populated with sedum plants to enhance the biodiversity of the site, providing habitats for insects and birds and to help to filter pollutants out of the air.
SSE has already installed a second ultra-rapid charging hub in the city at Kingsway West that has eight charging bays with 150-kilowatt charge units and curb-less charging areas to aid access.
SSE plans to build 300 ultra-rapid EV charging hubs powered by traceable, renewable energy in the UK and Ireland in the next five years with several sites already open and more under construction. The company has also announced plans to build its first e-HGV charging hub at Tyseley Energy Park in Birmingham.
Figures from the charger mapping service Zapmap show a 43% increase in the number of public chargers in the year to June 2024, taking the total number to 5,663. However, concerns remain that charging infrastructure is not keeping pace with electric vehicle sales.
Cabinet Secretary for Transport in the Scottish government Fiona Hyslop said that the Dundee hub will help to provide range confidence for people living in and visiting the area.
“To reduce transport emissions and protect the climate, the Scottish government is committed to phasing out the need for new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030. We can only do this if people have confidence in the availability of charging infrastructure – and that can only be achieved through private investment like what we can see here from SSE at Myrekirk,” she said.
She added that the Scottish Government’s £30 million Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund is an example of how it is working to attract private investment in public EV charging. ”Our latest funding will ensure more places in Scotland benefit from the kind of high quality infrastructure we can see here in Dundee,” she said.
