bp pulse opens latest EV charging hub in Oldbury

• bp pulse has opened a new ultra-fast charging hub in Oldbury, boosting EV charging capacity in the wider Birmingham area

• This is the seventh ultra-fast charge hub bp pulse has opened in the Midlands, providing vital infrastructure for drivers and businesses across the region

• The new hub is located minutes from the M5 and features 12 ultra-fast charging bays, powered by 300kW chargers that can charge 12 EVs at once

In the latest boost to the electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure across the Midlands, bp pulse has opened its newest ultra-fast charging hub in Oldbury, near Birmingham. The new ultra-fast 300kW chargers are located minutes off the M5 in Birchley Island Retail Park and can charge up to 12 EVs at once.

While customers charge, they can make the most of the amenities available onsite by grabbing a coffee at Tim Hortons, stopping for a bite to eat at McDonalds or getting a quick workout in at the JD gym.

The Oldbury site is the latest step in bp pulse’s EV charging rollout across the Midlands. In 2023, bp pulse opened six hubs across the region, including in Dudley, Kettering, Tamworth, Uttoxeter and Mansfield. It also joins bp pulse’s nearby Gigahub at the NEC in Birmingham, which is the UK’s largest EV charging hub . In total, up to 242 EVs are now able to charge simultaneously across the 7 sites, including at 150 ‘park and charge’ bays at the NEC.

These seven new hubs offer the charging speeds drivers want, in the locations they need them. They’re deliberately located close to major roads, like the M42, M6 and M5 – helping drivers across Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Staffordshire and the West Midlands set off on longer journeys with confidence.

Akira Kirton, vice president, bp pulse UK, said: "We are thrilled to open this new site in Oldbury, the seventh hub we’ve opened with our ultra-fast chargers in the Midlands. It’s another step forward for bp pulse’s vision of connecting the UK and helping deliver the EV charging infrastructure needed for the UK’s transition to electric vehicles."

Reza Shaybani, CEO of The EV Network, the partners bp pulse worked with to deliver the sites, said:

“We are proud to bring another great hub to the UK’s infrastructure. Birchley Island has been an exciting project for EVN and we have enjoyed working with bp pulse to bring this site live. We look forward to supporting more journeys and powering even more electric miles with bp pulse with more new hubs this year”.

bp pulse is one of the largest rapid and ultra-fast public EV charging networks in the UK. It has ambitious plans to deliver on-the-go and destination charging infrastructure. Today, around 70% of the population in Great Britain lives within a five-mile radius of a bp pulse rapid or ultra-fast charge point.

Notes to editor:

While today bp is mostly in oil and gas, we increased the proportion of our global annual investment that went into our lower carbon & other transition businesses from around 3% in 2019 to around 23% in 2023.

Further information:

bp press office London, bppress@bp.com, +44 7919 217511

About bp pulse:

bp pulse is bp’s electric vehicle (EV) charging business. It is one of the leading rapid and ultra-fast public EV charging networks in the UK and operates one of the largest number of sites with ultra-fast charging in Germany.

bp’s EV charging journey started in 2018 with the acquisition of Chargemaster Ltd in the UK. Rebranded to bp pulse, its presence has extended rapidly across the world to China, Germany, Netherlands and the US.

Focused on fast, reliable charging bp pulse is rolling out charge points to consumers wherever they need them: destination, on-the-go and bp forecourts. The additional focus for commercial fleets includes depot and fleet at home charging.

EV charging is one of the key growth engines driving bp's transformation to an integrated energy company. The company aims to grow its network of public EV charging points by 2030 to over 100,000 worldwide.