Start-up energy company, Cheesecake Energy Ltd (CEL), says its ‘eTanker’ battery could speed up electric car charging while also protecting the grid from a potential overload.

The battery is both a green and a low-cost solution as its materials are repurposed from ex-service Volvo truck engines. 

The technology works by heating and compressing air before storing it in a tank containing 20 tonnes of gravel. When electricity is required, the compressed air and heat are used to turn the Volvo truck engines which drive the electric motors in reverse to generate electricity.

This means there is no need for expensive and rare metals, such as cobalt, that are used in traditional lithium-ion batteries. Not only are these hard to resource, but the process of extraction is detrimental to the environment. 

CEL has announced that their new technology could save drivers up to 40% compared to the current cheapest batteries available on the market. 

Annette Pass, head of innovation at National Highways, commented: “Cheesecake’s project is an excellent example of the changes that are being made to reduce carbon in the transport industry. It also plays a part in National Highway’s net zero carbon plan, which will see a rapid cut in carbon from road construction, maintenance and operations, and supports the transition to zero-emission vehicles.”

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It is currently illegal to use e-scooters on public roads in England unless they are part of an official rental trial. Despite this, use has skyrocketed in recent months, with 1 million private e-scooters imported to the UK since 2018 and approximately 750,000 driven on public highways.

E-scooters are widely available for purchase and sold at major retailers like Argos and Currys, with disclaimers against their illegal road use routinely ignored. Most private e-scooters are limited to 19mph, although some can reach up to double this speed.

In a public statement released in May 2022, a government spokeswoman commented: “While riding a privately owned e-scooter on public land is currently illegal, we are considering how best to design future regulations and our Transport Bill will help us to take the steps we need to make e-scooters safer and support innovation.”

Transport Minister Grant Shapps previously told MPs that he wanted to crack down on retailers, making it illegal to sell e-scooters which don’t meet regulatory standards. Shapps explained: “The Government would then be able to stipulate that all e-scooters sold met certain standards concerning speed, power and lights, among other things.” 

The pledge to revise private e-scooter use has sparked nationwide debate, with many road users declaring them an unsafe addition. 

A Freedom of Information request to NHS Ambulance Trusts also highlighted that e-scooter incidents are on the rise. It revealed that 82% more ambulances were called to assist e-scooter-related accidents in 2021 than in 2019. In total, the NHS treated 713 patients that had been involved in such accidents last year.

However, these account for just a small minority of total road casualties, suggesting their use may not pose the most significant risk to road users.

Lorna Stevenson, an e-scooter researcher at the University of Westminster, commented: “The use of illegal e-scooters is demonstrating a clear unmet transport need. People are using them who won’t know they’re illegal, but others who do, and still see it as worth the risk.

“The question is, what is the rest of the transport system not providing to these people? Pretty much everyone agrees that the current situation is bad. The fact that it’s legal to walk into a shop and buy an e-scooter, but not to ride it on the road, is a mess for all concerned.” 

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Released on the 9th September 2021 for World EV Day, it offers car owners practical advice about electric vehicles. Drivers can view how much money they could save if they bought an EV, as well as informing them of the environmental benefits. 

The app is free to use and was funded with £2.7million from the UK Space Agency organisation. In showing drivers how EVs could be beneficial to them, the developers hope that car owners will be encouraged to go electric.

With less than two months until the COP26 climate summit in Britain, EV8 Switch is just one of the ways the Government is backing greener initiatives, working with the industry to provide information that consumers need.

Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, said: “This World EV Day, I want to not only provide easy access to the tools that people need to feel confident about making the switch but also to make sure that charge points are accessible, affordable and recognisable.

“That’s why we have already committed £1.3 billion to accelerate the rollout of charging infrastructure up and down the country. And as we look forward to COP26 and beyond, our vision is that the UK is at the forefront of the zero-emission transport future, creating thousands of green jobs in the process.”

The app will also have a compatibility section that shows drivers which car would be most suited to their needs, based on their activities. It can also tell vehicle owners where the nearest charge points are to them, helping to show how an EV could fit into their lifestyle.

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The organisation leading the study is set to receive a reported £2m, which falls under the £20m allocated to zero-emission road freight trials under the DfT’s plan. Decarbonising lorries will help to build a more environmentally friendly road network across the UK.

Heavy goods vehicles are currently responsible for almost a 5th (18%) of all road CO2 emissions, despite making up just 1.2% of traffic. By 2040, all new diesel and petrol lorries in Britain are due to be banned, meaning a new system is needed to provide alternative power for these large vehicles. 

The ‘e-highway’ will involve the installation of overhead wires on up to 19 miles of the M180. The technology, similar to that which powers trains and trams, will charge a battery that has been fitted into each lorry as it’s being driven. Lorries cannot run on a single charge like electric cars, because they require too much power.

Similar plans have been trialled in Germany and Sweden on a smaller scale. If the study goes ahead, this will be the first large-scale deployment of such technology worldwide. The vehicles and their power cables could be on British roads as early as 2024.

William Wilson, CEO of Siemens Mobility Limited, said: “Investing in proven technologies like e-highways can help us go further and faster to decarbonise the UK’s transport network, and support jobs and growth to level up the country.

“By building on successful trials from other countries like Germany, our ERS consortium M180 trial will help the UK move a step closer to replacing more polluting trucks with clean, efficient electric HGVs.”

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Ofgem says that this comes as part of a larger push to ‘ensure Britain has the energy infrastructure it needs to support the move to low carbon transport and heating while maintaining secure supplies’.

The money will be delivered over the next two years, helping to triple the current network of charging stations. These additional charge points (including new ultra-rapid charge points) will be positioned in key locations, such as cities, motorway services and train stations in rural areas.

Currently, an increasing number of people are choosing to buy electric vehicles. However, Ofgem has found that up to 36% of households not intending to purchase one stated a lack of nearby charge points as a reason why.

The government regulator hopes that the roll-out of these plans will help to address concerns surrounding the issues of range and access to a charger.

Jonathan Brearley, Chief Executive of Ofgem, said: “The payment will support the rapid take up of electric vehicles, which will be vital if Britain is to hit its climate change targets. Drivers need to be confident that they can charge their car quickly when they need to.”

Transport Minister Rachel Maclean also added: “With more than 500,000 electric cars now on UK roads, this will help to increase this number even further as drivers continue to make the switch to cleaner, greener vehicles.”

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