Aberdeenshire Council has confirmed changes to charging charges for electric vehicles on its public charger network from April.
Earlier this year, the council’s Infrastructure Services Committee approved changes that will see the standard rate tariff increase from 24p per kWh to 47p per kWh and a new £30 surcharge charged for fast chargers.
A reduced rate of 27p per kWh will be available for overnight charging between 8pm and 8am on the 7kW and 22kW fast chargers.
Despite rising energy costs, Aberdeenshire maintained its electric vehicle charging price throughout most of 2022-23.
However, the current charges only cover the cost of energy used and with the rise in the cost of energy and the reduction of government subsidies, the council agreed to increase the tariffs in order to protect the charging network in the future.
The increase in the fees charged will also bring the public network closer in line with the cost of commercial freight which should encourage more investors to enter the local market and thus increase the number of charging points across the region.
Ewan Wallace, the council’s head of environmental services and sustainability, explained: “The council must ensure it gets good value for money, yet the cost of saving electric vehicle charges continues to rise.
“We have kept the tariff below the market rate despite the increase in energy costs, but we need to move the grid to a more sustainable base in the long term.
This requires us to consider covering the “full cost” of connecting the grid – not just the cost of the energy used.
“We believe our charging network continues to offer very good value to EV users.
“The lack of charging points across Aberdeenshire is often raised as a concern by electric vehicle drivers, and with an increase in tariffs we will be in a better position to expand the charger network by reinvesting this money.
“By charging an overstay charge on our fast chargers, we also hope to discourage ‘falling off the charger’ which is another common complaint of electric vehicle users across the country.
“These chargers are designed for rapid turnover, so hopefully by imposing an overstay penalty this will encourage good behavior and improve access for all EV users.”
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