BP Pulse, the EV arm of oil and gas conglomerate BP, placed a new order for DC fast chargers from Tritium, manufacturer of electric vehicle power supplies. The companies did not specify how many chargers are in the new order, but Tritium calls it the “largest ever order from a single customer”. The transaction means there will soon be even more available chargers as electric vehicle adoption increases and government-mandated deadlines for eliminating combustion engine cars draw closer.
“We look forward to putting these chargers to work on three continents,” said Richard Bartlett, CEO of BP Pulse, in a press release. BP Pulse currently operates around 60 charging points across the UK based on the online map and is working to expand in Australia, Europe and the United States.
BP and Tritium entered into a multi-year contract in April last year with the aim of expanding the network of BP Pulse’s fleet and publicly accessible fast charging stations. Tritium recently partnered with DC-America in October to help build a nationwide fast-charging network in the US. The US-based company also sells chargers other clients such as Osprey in the UK.
Tritium builds its DC chargers, which are rated for speeds of 50 and 150 kWh, largely at its Lebanon, Tennessee plant, which opened in August. It also has a factory in Brisbane, Australia, where it plans to build chargers for BP Pulse deployments landing down under. The company’s US plant is said to be capable of producing 30,000 units a year “at full maturity”, while the Australian one is capable of producing 5,000. Tritium did not specify when its plants would reach production capacity.
BP’s deals with Hertz and Tritium highlight a growing interest from traditional fossil fuel companies to step up their game to support EV growth. This week, the major oil company Shell acquired EV charging network Volta. Both transactions could well set the tone for 2023 for electric cars to take off — though some states may be getting in the way of that.
