Osprey opens London electric-car charging hub

The new Croydon location features six charging points capable of speeds up to 175kW and is one of 150 new sites Osprey plans to open

Osprey Charging

The Osprey (formerly known as Engenie) electric-car charging network has opened its first rapid-charging hub in London, as part of a major expansion plan that includes the construction of 150 new high-powered charging hubs around the UK.

Located in Purley Cross Retail Park, Croydon, the site features six rapid-charging points capable of speeds between 75 and 175kW. Plug in an electric car that can be topped up at 175kW or faster, and you’ll add up to 100 miles of range in just 10 minutes.

The Croydon hub is the second of the 150 Osprey plans to open, following the first in Wolverhampton (pictured below) that went live in November 2021. Both are part of a £75 million project that'll see up to 12 150-175kW chargers installed at each of the planned locations, eventually totalling 1,500 individual units.

Construction is already underway at a further eight sites in Banbury (on the M40), Suffolk (on the A14), Essex (on the A127), Glasgow (on the M8), East Lothian (on the A1), Birmingham (on the M6), Crewe (on the A534) and Brackley (on the A43). The full complement of 150 hubs is set to take four years to finish.

Commenting on the opening, Ian Johnston, CEO of Osprey Charging, said: "Our new hub in Croydon – one of the most powerful of its kind in the city – will give current and future EV drivers in London access to reliable and convenient charging. Our nationwide hubs rollout will see large-scale charging infrastructure deployed rapidly, at the scale required to serve the mass market of EV drivers hitting Britain’s roads in the coming years.”

According to Osprey, all of the 150 planned locations will be "conveniently located on A-roads and motorways, near food and drink amenities". Sites in the first batch are adjacent to major retailers, including Costa Coffee, Lidl, Aldi, Pizza Hut, KFC and Curry’s PC World.

The Wolverhampton site was the first in the UK to use charger optimisation technology from Kempower, with the rest of the Osprey sites soon following suit. The company says this technology will allow "every vehicle to charge at its maximum rate throughout its entire charging cycle, without impacting other vehicles". It does this by optimising grid connections, meaning more chargers can be installed per site than traditional chargers, without a need for more power.

Welcome one and all, I’m Ellis the news reporter on Auto Express, the brand’s former online reviews editor and contributor to DrivingElectric. I’m proud to say I cut my teeth reporting and reviewing all things EV as the content editor on DrivingElectric. I joined the team while completing my master’s degree in automotive journalism at Coventry University and since then I’ve driven just about every electric car and hybrid I could get my hands on.

Recommended

Has the UK given up on EVs? New government ‘Plan for Drivers’ says no
Plan for Drivers
News

Has the UK given up on EVs? New government ‘Plan for Drivers’ says no

3 Oct 2023
Comment: finance, funding and fuel prices means now’s the best time to buy an EV
Header
Comment

Comment: finance, funding and fuel prices means now’s the best time to buy an EV

15 Sep 2023
BP Pulse opens UK’s biggest EV charging station
BP Pulse Gigahub
News

BP Pulse opens UK’s biggest EV charging station

7 Sep 2023
Best home electric car chargers 2023: how to choose the right EV wallbox
BP pulse charger
Your questions answered

Best home electric car chargers 2023: how to choose the right EV wallbox

7 Sep 2023

Most Popular

First contact: facelifted Kia EV6 will look even more like a UFO
Kia EV6 facelift
News

First contact: facelifted Kia EV6 will look even more like a UFO

Kia is readying an update for the EV6 crossover, which is set to include a new face and tech from the larger EV9
27 Nov 2023
New Fisker Ocean Sport washes up in the UK: £36k for a 288-mile range
Fisker Ocean Sport
News

New Fisker Ocean Sport washes up in the UK: £36k for a 288-mile range

American EV startup Fisker has just launched its entry-level Ocean SUV in the UK, with a range of up to 288 miles
22 Nov 2023
Electric Renault Twingo revealed as £17k rival to Citroen e-C3
Renault Twingo 1
News

Electric Renault Twingo revealed as £17k rival to Citroen e-C3

Renault has unveiled its smallest EV yet; a sub £20k city car with a claimed high level of efficiency
15 Nov 2023