£300m funding boost for Believ to deliver 30,000 EV chargers

Charge point operator Believ has secured £300 million to install 30,000 charge points to help electric vehicle (EV) drivers without off-street parking.

The funding is led by Believ’s joint owners Liberty Global and Zouk Capital, alongside four retail and infrastructure financing banks – Santander, ABN Amro, NatWest and MUFG.  

Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO, says the funding signifies a major commitment from private industry. “It recognises the scale of investment required and the urgency of the need,” he said.

“Confidence in EVs will continue to grow as drivers see more infrastructure going into the ground. At Believ, we are very proud to be at the heart of this journey.” 

Jonathan Pearson, chairman at Believ and chief financial officer of Liberty Growth at Liberty Global, believes the funding announced today demonstrates the potential of partnering with the public sector in the UK to “create the critical EV charging infrastructure required for a greener future”.

“With Virgin Media O2 on board as a delivery partner and leveraging Liberty Global’s financing expertise, we look forward to Believ rolling out much-needed EV charge points throughout the UK,” he said.

Zouk Capital is the manager of the UK Government-anchored Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund (CIIF).

Jonathan Pearson, chairman of Believ and CFO for Liberty Growth at Liberty Global, Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO, and Massimo Resta, partner at Zouk Capital

“This landmark investment is a major moment - not just for Believ, but for the UK’s electric future,” said Massimo Resta, partner at Zouk Capital.

“The EV market is at an inflection point. EV penetration is expected to accelerate driven by the arrival of new mass-market vehicles at attractive price points.

“The EV charging rollout required to support the transition needs long-term private investment with strong partners.

“With this level of funding, Believ has the commercial strength, operational expertise, and local insight to deliver what communities and landowners need - on-street, town-centre, destination, and on-route charging - at real scale and pace.

“We are very excited about the opportunity in front of us and are proud to support Believ as it helps build the infrastructure backbone of a net zero Britain.”  

The Government has pledged £2.3 billion to help industry and drivers make a supported switch to EVs, with a £200m budget to help expand public charging and a dedicated Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund of £381m for local authorities in England.

Transport minister Lilian Greenwood said: “Believ’s investment is a brilliant vote of confidence in the transition to electric and another fantastic example of Government and industry working together to roll out tens of thousands of charge points across the country.”

For Believ much of the investment will be dedicated to on-street, residential locations designed to help drivers without off-street parking transition to EVs.

Significant funding will also be allocated to rapid and ultra-rapid charging hubs as well as rural, underserved locations, ensuring that the switch away from petrol and diesel cars leaves no one behind. 

Recent contract wins for Believ include Suffolk County Council, the first awarded and signed LEVI contract.

In the private sector, it says it has a strong pipeline of agreed projects to be announced soon.