Scottish Borders Council is working in collaboration with several other local authorities to engage with the market to expand the public electric vehicle (EV) charging network across the region.
Expansion focussing on fair distribution of new public chargers across the region
It is hoped the collaborative approach and scale of the proposal will be attractive for private sector investment and deliver financial benefits as well as helping to ensure the expansion is carried out in an even and fair way, ensuring suitable provision for rural areas.
Next steps
The formal procurement exercise will begin in May 2025 with a future report to be brought back to Council in mid-2026 to consider the results of a collaborative procurement, including any budget and risk implications, and to decide whether an award should be made to an identified preferred bidder.
Councillor Jenny Linehan, Executive Member for Environment, Sustainability and Transport:
“Electric vehicle usage is increasing rapidly and we need to act quickly as a Council to ensure the EV charging network across the region is sufficient to meet demand now and well into the future.
“The procurement process will clearly set out our aspirations for an expanded network whilst factoring in the unique challenges faced by a rural region. It is important to deliver the appropriate coverage of chargers for rural communities, making them more readily available for people without private driveways.
“We now need to engage with private sector investors to make this possible and we will be working throughout the year with our local authority partners to make this possible.”