More electric charging points added in towns in Kildare

Tesco Ireland and ESB have confirmed the completion of 47 new electric vehicle (EV) charge points which have been installed at Tesco car parks right across the country.

There will be seven charging points throughout Co Kildare - in Kildare Town, Naas, Maynooth, Celbridge, Newbridge, Clane and Kildare Village.

The ESB chargers are 22kW dual chargers providing charging capacity to two vehicles simultaneously. The chargers will be capable of providing up to 145km of driving range in 60 minutes. The chargers will allow Tesco customers to easily charge their cars conveniently while shopping, positively contributing to a cleaner environment.

New EV registrations continue to grow year-on-year with figures from the CSO* suggesting that the number of new electric cars licensed in the first 11 months of 2020 grew by 16.4% from 3,313 to 3,855. Tesco and ESB announced their partnership one-year ago and together are working to contribute to infrastructure for the future, as the Government aims to have 1 million electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2030.

Geoff Byrne, Chief Operating Officer, Tesco Ireland said: “We are delighted to see the roll-out of the electric vehicle infrastructure completed at Tesco store car parks nationwide. In partnership with ESB, we continue to look to the future to support our customers in every way we can. Customer feedback as chargers came on stream this year has been very positive, as a convenient way of charging their vehicle while they shop in store. Our partnership with ESB has been an important part of our decarbonisation journey, which aims to benefit our customers, our business and wider society. We look forward to further engagement in the future.”

Marguerite Sayers, ESB said: "ESB is proud to partner with Tesco Ireland to ensure its customers across the country have access to electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The electrification of transport is key to the low-carbon transition with such partnerships like this critical to reaching our targets. This work is one of the many carbon reduction projects we have completed with Tesco Ireland, and we are delighted to help them in meeting their targets of becoming a zero-carbon retailer by 2050.”

For the past three years, Tesco Ireland has been procuring 100% renewable electricity for its full usage across its property portfolio. Tesco also produces energy via a wind turbine situated at its Donabate Distribution Centre, which generates 1.5 million kWh per year, of which 10% goes back to the national grid. Tesco also powers six of its stores via renewable gas produced from food surplus (excess post-charity donations/ colleague distribution).

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, customers are reminded to follow public health advice on social distancing, respiratory and hand hygiene etiquette when using the charge points.

Visit ESB.ie/ecars to find your nearest charge point.