UK petrol station group EG to buy Tesla charging units

LONDON: British petrol station operator EG Group will buy Tesla's ultra-fast charging units to help roll out its electric vehicle charging network across Europe, it said today.

EG, owned by the billionaire Issa brothers who also own UK supermarket Asda, said it was aiming to expand its charging network from over 600 chargers currently deployed to more than 20,000 chargers at its own sites over time.

Electric vehicle adoption is seen as key to Britain's goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050 but the car industry has called for a faster expansion of the public charging network in order to enable drivers to make the switch.

The UK had just over 49,000 public electric vehicle charging devices installed as of Oct 1, according to government figures.

The "open network" Tesla chargers being bought by EG will enable all drivers to access them regardless of the brand of their vehicle, the company added.

"The rapid installation of reliable, easy-to-use EV charging infrastructure is the right step towards a sustainable future," Tesla's senior director of Charging Infrastructure, Rebecca Tinucci, said.

Tesla's fast-charging hardware will also be available for purchase to "other leaders" in the space, she added.