Commercial EV charging is one of the fastest-growing infrastructure requirements across the UK property and development sector. Car parks, retail parks, hospitality venues, housing developments, office campuses and fleet depots are all under pressure to provide EV charging capacity, and the limiting factor in almost every case is not the charger hardware, but the electrical infrastructure behind it.
R&D Cable Jointing delivers the LV and HV electrical infrastructure that makes commercial EV charging possible. We do not install charger pods, that is your charge point operator's scope. We deliver everything behind the charger: the cable runs, feeder pillars, substations, earthing, testing and connection day management that gives the CPO a live supply to connect to.
Not sure what electrical infrastructure you need? Send us the site plan, the number of charging points and the charger specifications. We'll tell you whether your existing LV supply is sufficient or whether you need a new DNO connection, feeder pillar or 11kV substation, and what that involves in terms of programme and cost.
For smaller installations where the existing LV supply is sufficient, typically up to 6-8 AC chargers at 7-22kW per unit, the infrastructure requirement is a new feeder pillar connected to the existing LV network. We install the LV cable from the existing distribution board or MSDB to the feeder pillar position, make the connections and prepare the supply point for the CPO to connect their charger equipment.
Where the total EV charging load exceeds the available capacity on the existing LV network, we provide LV reinforcement works, new cable runs from the main distribution board, uprated switchgear connections, new MSDBs and sub-distribution boards. The extent of LV reinforcement is determined by the load assessment, which we can assist with as part of the pre-construction scope review.
Larger EV charging installations, rapid charging hubs, fleet depots, major car parks and motorway service areas, require a dedicated 11kV substation. The total load from multiple rapid or ultra-rapid chargers can easily exceed 500kW to 1MW, which requires a DNO connection at 11kV and a new substation to step the voltage down to LV for distribution to the charger positions. We provide the full substation installation scope:
The largest EV charging and fleet electrification projects, major motorway service area clusters, bus depot electrification programmes and large logistics fleet depots, may require 33kV connections where the total load exceeds what is available at 11kV. We provide 33kV cable jointing and termination works for these larger schemes.
Where the EV charging project requires a new connection to the DNO network, rather than an extension of an existing supply, an ICP will manage the contestable works. We operate within ICP supply chains as the specialist HV jointing and substation contractor, delivering the HV cable and substation scope to DNO standards.
Energising a new EV charging substation requires a Senior Authorised Person to manage switching, issue Permits to Work and supervise the connection. Our in-house SAP capability up to 33kV means you do not need to coordinate a separate SAP contractor, we provide both the jointing and the SAP attendance under one contract.
R&D Cable Jointing does not supply or install charger pods, charging management software or payment systems. Our scope is the electrical infrastructure, cables, substations, feeder pillars and connections, that gives your charge point operator a live supply to connect to.
Send us the scope, cable type, voltage and location and we'll come back with availability and a clear plan. No lengthy process, just a straight answer.