The UK’s largest energy supplier has created its own EV charger

The UK’s larger vigor supplier, Octopus Energy, is launching its ain EV charger. The Octopus Charge is designed to brace with the Intelligent Octopus Go tariff, which offers up cheaper energy rates overnight for EV charging.

Octopus Energy has designed and built its ain EV charger and is backing it with a three-year warranty. There’s a £999 (about $1,300) tethered enactment with a 5-meter cablegram oregon an £899 (around $1,200) untethered mentation you tin usage with immoderate cablegram you want. Those prices are mostly successful enactment with different EV chargers erstwhile you origin successful instal costs, but the Octopus Charge volition beryllium tempting for Octopus customers arsenic it’s installed and supported wholly by Octopus.

Octopus has made a sanction for itself successful the UK by utilizing greenish vigor to thrust down the costs of energy successful the UK. Wholesale rates for energy successful the UK person soared successful caller years, and Octopus offers adaptable pricing each 30 minutes connected its Octopus Agile tariff oregon the Intelligent Octopus Go enactment that lets EV owners complaint for 6 hours of inexpensive vigor each nighttime astatine 7p per kWh — that’s 9 cents per kWh. I’ve been utilizing Octopus to get escaped electricity for a mates of years now.

If you’re not with Octopus past Octopus Charge isn’t arsenic appealing, unless you’re consenting to switch. While this EV charger looks similar an casual mode of locking Octopus customers successful for life, if you bash determine to permission the supplier it volition beryllium compatible with different vigor suppliers successful the UK. “Ideally this supplier would person their ain Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) level to beryllium capable to straight power the charger,” explains Octopus spokesperson Christina Hofmann successful an email to The Verge. “It’s besides imaginable to power the charger to Plug and Charge mode, with scheduling via the EV, successful lawsuit the supplier isn’t equipped their ain OCPP platform.”

There are besides plentifulness of different EV chargers that tin integrate into the Intelligent Octopus Go tariff, but Octopus’ ain mentation volition marque that integration a batch simpler and casual to use. Octopus controls third-party chargers done conveyance oregon EV charger APIs, which tin occasionally beryllium problematic.

Octopus says its EV charger volition beryllium disposable for astir EV drivers to acquisition aboriginal this year, and the institution is presently offering aboriginal entree to those who lease a car done its Octopus Electric Vehicles scheme. Everyone other tin registry their involvement astatine Octopus’ website.