Weev receives £50m to boost electric vehicle charge point rollout

Electric charge point operator Weev has received £50 million from Octopus Investments, part of Octopus Group, to help address the shortage of electric vehuicle (EV) charging infrastructure in Northern Ireland.

The region had only 20 public charge points per 100,000 people - substantially lower than the UK average of 60, according to Department for Transport figures.    

Weev was set up by Dominic Kearns and Thomas O'Hagan (pictured above) in 2022 to create Northern Ireland's largest privately operated EV charging network.

The company installs public chargers and end-to-end EV solutions for workplace and fleet.

Philip Rainey, CEO, Weev said: "This investment from Octopus enables a major expansion to the size and scope of the rollout we announced at launch last year.  

“We can now increase our focus on providing more rapid and ultra-rapid charging hubs in response to growing demand from EV drivers. 

“In total, the capital will enable us to install and maintain a network of thousands of EV charging points over the next five years using locally-based teams and expertise."

This will be the first investment for Octopus Sustainable Infrastructure Fund (OSIF); a strategy announced last year with cornerstone investment from the UK Infrastructure Bank.

Lukasz Michalak, investment director for sustainable infrastructure at Octopus, said: "OSIF is focused on investing growth capital into sustainable infrastructure businesses tackling climate change and supporting levelling-up ambitions across the UK.

“Weev is the perfect example of the next generation of infrastructure companies doing just that. By backing Weev, we see a great opportunity to deliver a positive impact to Northern Ireland's communities while meeting the financial objectives of the fund.”

OSIF will provide growth capital to the next generation of infrastructure companies with proven technology and transformative potential, that are critical to meeting the scale of the UK’s net zero ambitions.

John Flint, CEO of the UK Infrastructure Bank, said: "We invested in the Octopus Sustainable Investment Fund with the purpose of increasing capital for the next generation of sustainable infrastructure projects across the UK.

“The potential Weev has to scale up EV charging in Northern Ireland is significant, and we look forward to seeing the impact on decarbonising the local transport infrastructure to support the UK's transition to net zero."

In arranging this financing, Weev was advised by Cameron Barney LLP and Tughans LLP. The Weev founders were advised by Radius Corporate Finance Limited. OSIF was advised by Addleshaw Goddard LLP.