Multiple EV
In 2020, the government announced plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030. As a result, the number of electric vehicles on our roads is predicted to rise to more than 35 million in the next 30 years. We are supporting this transition and investing in our network to ensure that it is fit for a future where low carbon technologies are commonplace in all UK homes and businesses.
Installing an electric vehicle charge point
You should start by contacting an accredited electric vehicle charge point installer to confirm whether your electricity supply is adequate to support the charging point. It is general practice that the installer would carry out any required applications for upgrade in supply capacity or notify us when the charge point has been installed. The property owner should ensure this is carried out by their supplier. Provided there is no problem with your electricity supply or the equipment which joins your internal wiring to our electricity network, named the 'cut-out', you can install the charge point.
Please refer to this process flow chart to determine whether you need to 'apply to connect' or 'connect and notify'. If you need to ‘apply to connect’ please send completed 'apply to connect' forms to connectionapplications@enwl.co.uk. If after following the flow chart you only need to 'connect and notify'; once you have installed your charge point, please send your 'connect and notify' forms to G98notifications@enwl.co.uk.
For applications that consist of a single chargepoint this application form can be utilised.
Still not sure which email address to send your completed form to?
Use the questions below to help identify whether you need to 'Apply to Connect' or 'Connect and Notify'
- Will the total electrical energy utilised within the property, including the electric vehicle charge point, exceed 13.8kW / 60 amps per phase? Applicable only to properties with whole current metering. The majority of residential and small business properties will be metered utilising whole current metering. Whole current metering is generally utilised for supplies less than 69kW.
- Does the electric vehicle charge point have a Direct Current (DC) output? Alternating Current (AC) charging is generally used at home, and DC charging is used in the street, in offices and often at service stations.
- For properties with Current Transformer (CT) metering, is the maximum AC output of all electric vehicle charge points greater than 30% of the Maximum Import Capacity (MIC). CT metering is generally utilised for properties with three phase supplies and power usage greater than 69kW.
- For chargers that facilitate Vehicle to Grid (V2G); is the charger type tested to EREC G98 standards? Chargers must be type tested to EREC G98 specifications to be eligible for connect and notify. This can be checked via the ENAs type test register. Chargers utilising EREC G99 type tested equipment still need to apply for a connection
- Are you employing a load management scheme to manage the import, or export (applicable to sites with V2G)? These are sometimes used to reduce the size of network connection required
Apply to connect
Once you have reviewed the process flow chart, complete this ENA application form and email it to connectionapplications@ enwl.co.uk
Connect & notify
Once you have reviewed the process flow chart, notify us by completing this ENA form and email it to G98notifications@enwl.co.uk
Process flow chart
This process flow chart will help you determine when you need to notify us about your installation and when you will need to make a new application.
Talk to the experts
Book a one-to-one surgery appointment with our EV Connections experts to discuss a project or list of potential sites.
To submit your application, you will need:
- Location plan
- Site layout plan
- Manufacturer's specification sheet
Guidance for installers
The Institution of Engineering and Technology’s Code of Practice on Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment Installation provides guidance for installers and confirms their responsibilities.
Specifically it outlines the installer’s responsibility to:
- Assess the adequacy of the supply capacity for the new EV’s electricity consumption, plus any existing electricity demand, before installing the charging equipment
- Assess the adequacy of the earthing, before installing the charging equipment
- Notify your electricity Distribution Network Operator (DNO) once the charge point has been installed. If you are in Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, and parts of Derbyshire and Cheshire; this is Electricity North West. You can use our post code tracker to verify your supplier and DNO.
Electricity North West owns and maintains the electricity network of overhead lines and underground cables that bring power to 2.5 million homes and businesses in the North West.
EVs can use as much electricity as a domestic power shower, but for much longer, which can have a significant impact on demand for electricity on that part of the network.
It’s therefore important that you talk to us about your charge point installation so that we can assess whether the local electricity network and your site have enough capacity to meet your charging needs. For larger projects, we may need to build new infrastructure which will affect the time and cost of your project.
Approximate connection costs and timescales
The costs and timescales for connecting your charge point to the electricity network will depend on the number and size of your charge points. The information below should be used as a guide only as timescales will vary according to available capacity on the network.
| Size of installation | Size | Number of charge points | Connection time |
| Medium | 200kVA – 1,000 kVA (small business or car park) | More than 3 fast or more than 1 rapid charge point | 8 – 12 weeks |
| Large | Above 1,000 kVA (large car parks and commercial premises) | Multiple fast/ rapid charge points | >6 months |
Connecting charge points on the public highway
Local authorities and customers without off-street parking may wish to install charge points on the public highway. These charge points must be installed to the appropriate standards to ensure a safe and reliable power supply for those charging their vehicles and for the rest of the public.
In the majority of cases where a charger needs to be on-street you will need to request a new connection which is separate to any other existing supply and which is separately metered. The meter should be housed in a position which is maintained and accessed by the customer. It is not permitted to run charging cables across public footpaths so on-street charge points will normally be located at the kerbside.
It is also sometimes possible to connect a single charge point to an existing unmetered connection such as a street lighting column, providing certain criteria are met.
Installers who are not installing charge points on behalf of the local authority should ensure that they have the relevant permission from the authority before installing on-street charging facilities.
For more information on design standards for installing EV charge points, please refer to the IET Code of Practice for Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment