Pilots can now charge their electric planes with one tap of a card thanks to a tie-up between a leading global clean energy tech business and the world’s first multi-site smart charging network for aircraft.
Octopus Electroverse, which is the electric vehicle (EV) charging platform from Octopus Energy, will now sync airside with AeroVolt, the pioneering aircraft-charging network.
The synergy will help power-up green transport, says Zoisa North-Bond, Octopus Energy for Business CEO:
“Our skies are cleaner with each new electric plane, and we’re thrilled to make the journey easier for pilots, extending our charging experience for electric cars to electric aircraft. With just a tap of their Electroverse card, pilots can plug in and power up. This is the start of an exciting transition as we’re set to supercharge the takeoff of e-mobility.”
Takeoff for UK airport disruptor
AeroVolt currently has charge points installed at seven sites around the UK, including at Bournemouth, Lydd, Dunkeswell, and Shoreham airports, with 12 more to come online soon. The disruptor is already in talks with nearly 70 more airports looking to have chargers installed.
The new tie-up is a real win-win for both parties, says Guy Haydon, Chief Commercial Officer at AeroVolt:
“This partnership with Octopus will bring AeroVolt’s car chargers into the Electroverse and deliver a market-leading aircraft charging experience to electric pilots — true interoperability, charging both your wheels and your wings.”
Pioneering ‘one card, one app’ model
Launched in summer 2020, Octopus Electroverse is now the biggest EV roaming service in the UK.
Open to anyone, it also enables EV drivers across the globe to access over 650,000 different charge points from nearly 600 different charging operator brands in over 40 countries.
Its stated ambition is to revolutionise on-the-go charging for drivers of electric cars by removing the need for multiple apps to access different charge-point brands through its ‘one card, one app’ model.
Pilots who are also utility customers with Octopus enjoy the added benefit of syncing up their public charging costs onto their existing home energy bill, in one simple payment.
Electroverse represents the next step in Octopus Energy’s activities to help speed up the transition to green transport. Its Octopus Electric Vehicles division is now the UK’s largest EV-only leasing business and the company is a pioneer in smart tariffs for EVs.
It manages 1GW of shiftable load through its Intelligent Octopus Go tariff, using the company’s advanced data and machine-learning platform Kraken to charge EVs when it is cheapest and greenest.
Overall, Octopus has already licensed its Kraken platform to support over 54 million customer accounts worldwide through licensing deals with companies such as EDF, E.ON and Origin Energy.
Earlier this month the company also launched the UK’s first mass market vehicle-to-grid (V2G) tariff — Octopus Power Pack — enabling free home charging for drivers.
Octopus Energy is a global clean energy tech business, with operations in 18 countries.The group invests in, builds and flexibly manages renewable energy, operating a £6 billion portfolio of projects. Under its own retail brand, Octopus delivers energy products to 7.7 million households.
Further Reading:
- More about Octopus Electroverse, from Octopus Energy;
- More on Octopus Electric Vehicles; Octopus Power Pack; and the company’s Kraken technology;
- More about the smart aircraft-charging network, AeroVolt;
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