EG Group provides details for its EV-charging plans in the US

Dive Brief:

EG Group is building its network of electric-vehicle (EV) charging stations at select convenience stores and gas stations in the U.S., with points currently in development at approximately 50 locations, according to the company’s newly released Environmental, Social and Governance report.
The initiative is part of EG Group’s larger mission to lower its carbon footprint by at least 50% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050, according to the report.
As the fourth-largest c-store chain in the U.S. by size, EG Group announcing its skin in the EV-game marks another push in the industry’s EV-arms race across the country.

Dive Insight:

EG Groups’ charging points in the U.S. are in “various stages of development, from agreement to installation,” according to the report. The company said it’s continuing to explore its EV-charging rollout in the U.S. with various partners, although it didn’t specify who those partners are.

EG Group is the latest c-store company to reveal parts of its EV-charging strategy in the U.S. Others include 7-Eleven, Circle K, Phillips 66, Wawa and Pilot — some of which are launching hundreds, if not thousands, of charging points at their locations.

Overseas, EG Group already has a decent footprint of EV infrastructure, with 250 charging points across 98 locations in the U.K. and Europe, according to the report. In 2021, the company spent $3 million on ultra-fast EV chargers throughout the U.K. and Europe, and this past August, launched its own proprietary ultra-fast EV charging proposition, EV Point, which is being trialed across the U.K.

The company expects to have 300 charging points in the U.K. and Europe by the end of 2022, according to the report.

“We believe we are well placed to deliver the infrastructure to enable lower-carbon mobility for our customers,” Zuber Issa and Mohsin Issa, co-founders and co-CEOs of EG Group, said in the report.

EG Group is well aware of the “barriers” that come with building an EV-charging network, including purchase costs; sourcing metals for batteries and life-cycle vehicle emissions; a fragmented rollout of charging infrastructure; and the volatile cost of charging, according to the report.

However, the company believes it’s in a good position to take advantage of the opportunity.

“Our larger‑than-average, conveniently located sites can accommodate charging solutions that allow us to test and learn from developing technologies and evolving customer demands,” the company said in the report.

Blackburn, U.K.-based EG Group operates nearly 1,800 convenience stores and gas stations in the U.S. and more than 6,300 globally.