RAW Charging opens 22-bay Wolverhampton hub with free charging weekend
By Eve
RAW Charging has opened a 22-bay electric vehicle charging hub at Bentley Bridge Leisure Park in Wolverhampton, offering free charging on 22nd and 23rd September for drivers who sign up to RAW Rewards. The site comprises 16 ultra-rapid chargers, four AC bays and two DC rapid units. CEO Jason Simpson said the hub brings speed, reliability and convenience to one of the region's most visited retail and leisure destinations.
Why it matters
The 22-bay deployment at a high-footfall leisure park signals continued rollout momentum for RAW Charging and highlights the use of promotional incentives to drive customer acquisition at new hubs. The mix of ultra-rapid, rapid and AC chargers reflects a tiered approach to serving different dwell times and vehicle types.
Source
- Original title
- “RAW marks opening of Wolverhampton hub with free charging”
- Published
- 21 September 2026
- Updated
- 22 September 2026
- Also covered by
- businessmotoring.co.uk · fleetworld.co.uk · theenergyst.com · and more via Google News
In this story
- Topic
- EV Charging
- Place
- United Kingdom
- Tag
- RAW
Related news
Electrify America operates 6,029 DC fast-charging ports across 1,191 US sites
Electrify America now runs 6,029 DC fast-charging ports at 1,191 locations in the United States, making it the second largest DC charging network after Tesla Supercharger, according to InsideEVs citing the US Department of Energy's Alternative Fuels Data Center. Over the past year, the network's port count grew by 16% and station count by around 10%, with 202 ports added in the second quarter alone, representing 6.7% of all US DC fast-charging ports. ChargePoint, the third largest operator, installed 333 ports in the same quarter and holds 6.1% market share, while Walmart's network added more ports than any other non-Tesla company in the quarter, reaching 916 ports across 110 stations.
Why it matters
The figures confirm Electrify America's dominant position among non-Tesla networks and provide procurement teams with current scale benchmarks for the US fast-charging market. Walmart's aggressive second quarter rollout signals a major retail-led expansion that could reshape site partnership opportunities for CPOs and equipment suppliers.
Queue and reservation hardware shifts from niche to core layer as high utilisation sites hit capacity limits
The global market for public EV charging queue and reservation hardware is entering structural expansion as charge point operators face physical limits at high utilisation sites, according to an IndexBox report entering 2026. Demand is splitting between integrated systems for new high power hubs and retrofit solutions for existing stations. The hardware includes integrated displays, sensors, payment terminals, communication modules and access controllers, with supply chains characterised by validation requirements where approved vendor status with major CPOs and Tier 1 integrators often matters more than unit cost.
Why it matters
CPOs planning procurement must now evaluate queue management as core infrastructure rather than optional add on, with vendor selection increasingly driven by validation and integration partnerships rather than price alone. The bifurcation between new build and retrofit creates distinct channel and specification strategies for operators upgrading networks.
E.ON acquires former BP Pulse EV charging network in the Netherlands from Catom
E.ON has bought the EV charging business from Dutch fuel distributor Catom, which had acquired BP's petrol station and charging operations in the country last year. The portfolio includes 17 fast charging hubs with Alpitronic chargers delivering up to 300kW, 51 battery buffered sites for grid constrained locations, and 45 secured development sites for future rollout. E.ON Infrastructure will own and maintain the assets while sister utility Essent will handle customer facing operations and marketing, with sites rebranded to Essent and chargers carrying E.ON branding.
Why it matters
The deal consolidates a ready built Dutch charging estate under a major European utility, giving E.ON immediate scale in a market where battery buffered sites address grid capacity constraints. The 45 secured development sites offer a clear pipeline for staged expansion, while the dual brand model separates infrastructure ownership from customer operations.