Ionity opens first London fast-charging hub

This week, IONITY has cut the ribbon on a new charging hub at Greenwich Shopping Park in London - the first of several fast-charging hubs planned for the English capital. To promote the launch, the site will offer free charging for 24 hours starting on Friday.

According to IONITY, the new Greenwich charging hub features 12 charging bays delivering up to 400kW of power. Located close to the A206 as well as the O2 Arena and Greenwich Peninsula, it’s near some of South London’s busiest residential and commercial hubs.

Furthermore, it’s linked to IONITY’s partnership with Uber; the CPO is offering ‘attractive’ charging rates to ride-hailing drivers, and will generate real-world utilisation data to “help identify where future charging locations can have the most impact”. To promote the site, IONITY is offering a ‘Free Friday’ this week on 21 August. The offer is being billed as “free charging for 24 hours”, and can be accessed through the IONITY app.

As the CPO’s first urban site in the city, the Greenwich site serves as a template for IONITY’s wider ambitions across London. The firm has referred to it as the “first in a pipeline of ultra-rapid charging hubs” planned for London, adding that it has “many more urban sites under development” across the UK’s major cities.

However, as far as London is concerned, IONITY is yet to confirm specific locations or site numbers. If the Greenwich hub is anything to go by, expect to see future charging hubs located in or near retail parks with close proximity to highways and other commercial destinations.

Jeroen van Tilburg, CEO at IONITY, commented: “Our expansion goes beyond long-distance travel to enable reliable charging where demand is growing fastest: in urban areas. We must meet drivers where they need us, and in cities like London the next stage of electrification is now taking place.

“Growing numbers of drivers are choosing to make the switch to electric and it is vital that the supply of ultra-fast chargers is rapidly scaled up. We’re bringing up to 400 kW into urban areas, giving drivers the speed and reliability they expect from IONITY, closer to where they live and work.”