InstaVolt’s renewable-powered ultra-rapid EV charging superhub has officially opened, making 44 160kW ultra-rapid chargers available for public use.
The ‘superhub’ in Winchester was approved in late 2023. The site is 100% powered by renewable energy.
In August last year it was revealed that Enviromena would install a ground-mounted solar array on the superhub site, a roof-mounted system on the onsite café and 960kW/4MWh onsite battery energy storage.
It is the first of InstaVolt’s hubs to integrate onsite solar generation, and will use a mixture of the electricity generated at the solar power plant, battery storage and renewable grid power to run the chargers.
InstaVolt signed a deal with Octopus Energy for Business last year to use 100% green electricity from the supplier at its 800 UK charging locations, becoming the utility’s largest chargepoint operator (CPO) customer.
InstaVolt says the Winchester superhub is the largest and most advanced in the UK. It is designed to accommodate a wide variety of vehicles and features long drive-through bays suitable for larger vehicles.
According to Delvin Lane, CEO of InstaVolt, the superhub is a flagship site that “is also a milestone in innovation”.
The superhubs InstaVolt develops are designed as the next evolution of the service station, the company said. At the beginning of this year, plans put forward by the CPO for another superhub were approved by North Tyneside Council.
The Newcastle-upon-Tyne development will feature 30 rapid charging bays and 24 additional parking spaces, be accessible 24/7 and powered entirely by renewables.
Figures from EV chargepoint mapping service Zapmap show that at the end of 2024 there were 537 rapid charging hubs across the UK open to all EVs, an increase of 273 since the end of 2023.
InstaVolt was acquired by EQT Infrastructure in 2022, which took it on from Zouk Capital. At the beginning of 2024, the two companies confirmed a ‘substantial’ capital raise, but did not specify figures, to continue rolling out ultra-rapid public charging infrastructure.
According to Zapmap, more than 3,100 ultra-rapid EV chargepoints were installed last year. A total 321 ultra-rapid chargepoints (categorised as having 150kW+ output) were added in the UK just between the beginning of 2025 and the end of February.
The number of rapid (100kW+ output) and ultra-rapid chargers in the UK grew from 5,087 at the end of 2021 to 10,118 at the end of 2023 and 14,471 by December 2024. By the end of February, this reached 15,109.
The proportion of newly installed ultra-rapid chargepoints installed each year has increased, with 36% of new chargers installed in 2021 ultra-rapid, rising to 84% of those installed in 2024.
After Tesla, InstaVolt operates the most rapid and ultra-rapid charging points in the UK—the CPO does not operate any chargers below 100kW.
Most rapid and ultra-rapid chargepoints are in the South East of England, followed by Scotland. In February, CPO Believ installed the northern-most ultra-rapid charger in the Scottish Highlands.