North East Combined Authority opens market testing for £5 million LEVI Phase One charging concession
By Eve
The North East Combined Authority is testing the market ahead of procuring Phase One of its Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure programme, worth approximately £5 million of public charging infrastructure across Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear on a 15 year concession. The authority has £15.829 million of LEVI capital in total and is asking charge point operators to book slots with its ZEV team by 9 October 2026 to answer six questions, including whether they would bid for a concession model where the council retains ownership of chargepoints, the operator pays a fixed annual sum for five years, and then moves to revenue sharing.
Why it matters: This early market engagement gives CPOs a chance to shape the commercial terms of a significant regional deployment before formal procurement begins, with the concession structure and revenue split model likely to influence how operators price risk and returns over the 15 year contract term.