The funding was announced today (13 January) by transport minister John Hayes and is part of LEFT, the Low Emissions Freight Trial supported by DfT, OLEV and Innovate UK.
Zapinamo’s technology uses on/off grid and renewable sources for electric vehicle (EV) charging, and can deliver 400kW to charge a vehicle in minutes – ideal for electric commercial vehicles with long and/or demanding duty cycles.
The trials will be carried out by Zapinamo, supported by Iveco, food delivery firm Farmdrop and WMG, with the trials taking place in Bermondsey, South London.
Richard McMahon (pictured), professor of power electronics at WMG, explains: “Zapinamo has won funding under the low emissions freight trail (LEFT) scheme to provide a rapid charging facility for Farmdrop’s fleet of electric vans based at their Bermondsey depot.
“WMG has a key role in the project, drawing on its experience of complex power electronics-based systems in defining the power conversion technology for the local battery energy store, which delivers the fast charging while being gradually recharged from the mains. WMG’s commitment to developing highly efficient power converters using new wide band-gap semiconductor devices will provide the basis for future advances in Zapinamo’s system.”
Tim Martin, chief executive of Zapinamo, described it as “a great day” for his business and for the emerging commercial EV industry, adding: “Our technology is a global first and it is fantastic to be trialling it in London with our partners.”