Singapore’s EV push continues – SP Group announces public charging network, to have 500 locations by 2020

The push for electric vehicle (EV) adoption in Singapore continues to widen with the introduction of another public EV charging network. Earlier this week, utility company Singapore Power (SP) Group announced plans to have a network of 500 charging points up and running across the republic by 2020.

The charging locations will be made available in public areas such as shopping malls, residential areas, business parks and industrial sites. The company said that the first 30 charging points will be rolled out and operational by the end of this year.

The network will be fully compliant with the country’s national charging standards and will comprise both alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) chargers, with power ratings ranging from 22 kW to 50 kW.

It added that out of the 500 charging stations, more than 100 will be 50 kW DC charging points, which will offer the ability to fully charge an EV in as little as 30 minutes. At present, there are less than five DC chargers in operation in Singapore.

Singapore’s EV push continues – SP Group announces public charging network, to have 500 locations by 2020

The company also announced the launch of two tenders for the EV charging network, the first for the procurement of both AC and DC charging hardware and the second for the installation of the chargers.

It will also be introducing a mobile application that will aid EV users in locating available charging points across the island. Additionally, the app will provide automated updates on charging progress/completion and the means to make payment electronically for the use of the charging facilities. According to news reports, SP has not yet revealed the pricing plan, but is set to do so closer to the network’s introduction.

The SP network isn’t the only EV charging initiative available in Singapore. In December last year, EV car-sharing programme BlueSg announced plans to have 2,000 charging points across the island by 2020, with 400 of these being available for public use. Other small-scale players with publicly accessible charging points include Greenlot and Red Dot Power.