Agenda item

The Committee was presented with Neath Port Talbot’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure, which also contained the implementation plans and an overview of the wider strategy for public charging in the County Borough.

A discussion took place in relation to the capacity of the heavy fleet vehicles. Officers stated that in terms of heavy transport, the low carbon future was uncertain, however hydrogen vehicles and/or battery electric vehicles were a potential possibility; this part of the market was still evolving. It was noted that the industry had currently been focusing on battery electrical vehicles, which was now available in cars and light vans, with larger vans and vehicles also becoming readily available. Members were informed that recently there were a few electric refuse collection vehicles on the market and the Council had started to trial the vehicle within the County Borough for the past three days; the vehicle had successfully completed a full shift, and when it was returned to the yard it had 17% capacity left in it. It was added that these vehicles had about 1 tonne of batteries in them. Officers mentioned that they were currently looking at options to de-carbonise the Councils fleet in line with Government targets.

With the expanding numbers of the electric vehicles, Members asked why the Council was not considering the rapid chargers instead of the 7kW chargers. It was explained that most vehicles were returned in the afternoon and were in the yard overnight, so there wasn’t a need for them to be rapidly charged; Officers had also monitored the usage of the vehicles and most of the vans were travelling around 110/115 miles, with very few exceeding that distance. It was noted that when the vehicles returned in the afternoon, they had adequate time to charge; the non-rapid chargers were better on the longevity of the batteries, whereas the rapid chargers would degrade the batteries quicker. Officers stated that currently, charging over a longer period would be of no issue; however, noted that there will be rapid chargers available (50kW rapid charger) which would charge vehicles up to 80% of their capacity within around 30 minutes, however this would not be used as a standard charging mechanism for the fleet vehicles due to the reasons highlighted.

Given the area that Neath Port Talbot County Borough covers, it was asked if the Council will be working with its strategic partners such as Tai Tarian, the Police and the Fire Service to ensure that the maximum amount of points would be obtained within the County Borough. It was noted that the Councils regional colleagues were in the process, as part of the City Deal project, of commissioning consultants to help with the strategic plan; in doing so, they would be working with the university and will need to consult with other public service providers, such as the Police and Fire Service, to ensure that they were part of that agenda. It was added that the Police and Fire service would probably need an infrastructure of their own within their depots and stations, due to the size of their fleet. Officers mentioned that in planning terms, as legislation moves forward, it was possible that it will become a planning requirement within new residential developments to include public charging facilities within the new build estates; most houses that will be developed going forward will also likely have as a standard, electric charge points for the residential properties. It was confirmed that it was a large piece of work that needed a regional approach, so that the locations of the charging hubs and the distances between them were suitable; there will be a lot of challenges in terms of infrastructure and power supplies, however this would be part of the feasibility study.

It was asked whether the Council will need to purchase equipment that may be required if the vehicles do run out of charge to allow for them to return to their depot. Officers confirmed that they were looking at purchasing charge packs which will plug in to any vehicle and provide enough power for them to charge for around 10-15 minutes to facilitate their return to the depot.

Detailed within the circulated report, it stated that it was intended to explore the opportunity of opening the charging points for use by the public which could be operated on a cost recovery basis; Members asked if the rapid chargers weren’t installed, would it be viable and would the public choose to use the charging facilities with the non-rapid chargers as it would take longer to charge their vehicles. Officers confirmed that they were aware of this potential issue, however this was something that would be a focus in the future; the report was based around the fleet vehicles and their usage as this was what Officers were currently looking at. It was highlighted that there would be rapid chargers available, however there would be a lot of factors to consider including what the requirements were and how much power was currently available at the Quays. Further update reports would be provided in the future once the basics were installed and the infrastructure was up and running. A part of the long term plan was to provide the opportunity, as part of the infrastructure installed, for staff to charge their vehicles also.

Members were informed that the Councils Fleet Manager was the chair of the Welsh Public Sector Fleet Group in which the Fire Service, Police and others were represented; being part of that Group, the chair had also been able to work with the Welsh Government Energy Service on how to change Council fleets to low emissions over the next 10 years.

It was asked if Officers had looked into offset charging throughout the night in order to obtain the cheapest rates, and if it was an option to upgrade existing Council owned buildings with solar panels in order to use them to draw power for charging purposes. Officers highlighted that they were looking at other green infrastructures to support charging at the hubs; there were a number of buildings around the County Borough that may be suitable. Officers were working with valley communities and voluntary organisations to identify opportunities where hubs could be placed in. Members were informed that the Councils property assets were also being reviewed to establish where green credentials could be implemented in order to top up the grid as part of a green energy strategy.

Following Scrutiny, the report was noted.