BT’s old green cabinets to become EV chargers

BT has announced plans to convert its old green street cabinets into electric vehicle (EV) charging points, in a bid to tackle ‘the current national shortfall’.

The metal cabinets are traditionally used to store broadband and phone cabling. However, as technology advances, many will soon become defunct.

Under the pilot scheme, which is being led by ‘Etc.’ – the startup and digital incubation arm at BT Group – the first converted cabinet will be installed in East Lothian, Scotland in the coming weeks.

In total, it is hoped that 60,000 could be converted.

Tom Guy, managing director of Etc., said: “Our new charging solution is a huge step in bringing EV charging to the kerbside and exploring how we can address key barriers customers are currently facing.

“Working closely with local councils in Scotland and more widely across the UK, we are at a critical stage of our journey in tackling a very real customer problem that sits at the heart of our wider purpose to connect for good.”

The Government’s ambition is to increase the number of charging points from around 50,000 today to 300,000 by 2030.

This pilot project will explore how this solution could be scaled to support this vision.