Shell UK has said it will invest £20 to 25 billion in the energy sector over the next decade, according to an announcement reported on 25 March 2022 alongside the government's Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy1. Shell country chair David Bunch said more than 75% of the funding will go towards low carbon technologies, such as offshore wind, hydrogen, carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) and electric mobility1.
The company said its electric mobility arm, Shell Recharge Solutions, reached a new milestone with more than 10,000 public chargers available on its network in the UK in February1. The Shell announcement was made in a separate announcement from the government's charging plans, which set out support of £1.6bn to install 300,000 public electric vehicle chargepoints by 20301.
The government measures reported alongside the Shell figure include a new £450m Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund for projects such as EV hubs and on-street charging, so those without driveways have access to chargepoints1. A pilot scheme will see local authorities bid for a share of £10 million, and the funding includes up to £50 million to fund staff to work on local challenges and public chargepoint planning1. The pre-existing £950 million Rapid Charging Fund will support the rollout of at least 6,000 high powered super-fast chargepoints across England's motorways by 20351. The plans also require a 99% reliability rate at rapid chargepoints, and the government is mandating that operators provide real-time data about chargepoints1.
Also announced alongside the strategy was a plan by bp pulse to spend £1 billion on developing charging infrastructure in the UK, which it said would approximately triple the number of public charging points in its UK network and accelerate the rollout of 300kW and 150kW ultra-fast charging points able to provide up to 100 miles of range in around 10 minutes of charging, depending on the model of electric vehicle1.
The Shell investment figure is not broken down by year, technology or site in the reporting, and no further detail on where the money will be spent has been reported1.
Why it matters for households
The Shell commitment is a private sector investment figure, not a household subsidy or a change to bills. Its relevance to a home's energy independence lies in what it funds: low carbon generation such as offshore wind and hydrogen, and charging infrastructure for electric vehicles1. For a household considering an electric car, the charging network is the practical constraint, particularly for homes without off-street parking, which is the group the LEVI fund is aimed at1. The reliability and data requirements set out in the strategy, including the 99% reliability rate at rapid chargepoints, bear on whether public charging is dependable for those who cannot charge at home1.
The wider policy context for home energy is set out in the government's regulation and policy material, including standards for privately rented homes in Scotland and expected carbon reductions in new homes under the Future Homes Standard.
What happens next
The LEVI pilot scheme has been launched, with local authorities bidding for a share of £10 million in funding1. The Rapid Charging Fund is intended to support at least 6,000 high powered super-fast chargepoints across England's motorways by 20351. The government's target is 300,000 public chargepoints by 20301. No timetable has been reported for how Shell's £20 to 25 billion will be allocated across the decade1.