Purpose

Delivery of the concession contracts for the operation and management of Camden’s lamp column Electric Vehicle Charge Points (EVCPs) are contracted to Ubitricity Distributed Energy Systems UK Ltd (Ubitricity) under two contracts, one covering 93 lamp column EVCPs, and the second for 155 charge points previously managed by Siemens plc and novated to Ubitricity in March 2026. The current contracts are due to expire at the end of September 2026 when the operator is required to decommission the EVCPs and the contracts do not include express provision for extensions. The contracts do not incur any costs to the Council and generate income for the Council by way of a percentage share of the revenue generated.

Separately, the Council, in partnership with the London Borough of Islington, is preparing to procure a contract for the installation, operation and management of additional lamp column EVCPs funded by the Government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) scheme. LEVI funding will also replace the existing Ubitricity charge points when they are no longer in warranty. It was expected that LEVI would start in September 2026 but unfortunately there have been unforeseeable delays: according to latest timelines, the LEVI contract award is estimated at July 2027, and expected to become operational in September 2027.

In order to avoid a gap in lamp column charge point provision for electric vehicle users, between the expiry of the current Ubitricity contracts in 2026 and the start of the LEVI funded project in 2027, officers consider that the most effective option would be to extend the existing contracts with Ubitricity to ensure that the decommissioning of its 248 EVCPs aligns with the installation and commissioning of the new LEVI EVCPs. An extension of the existing Ubitricity contracts is therefore required to ensure continuity of service until the LEVI programme becomes operational. The proposed extensions are as follows:

•         Extend the contract with Ubitricity for 155 charge points for a 12-month period up to September 2027, for the estimated concession revenue value of £237,418. The current contract end date is 30 September 2026.

•         Extend the contract with Ubitricity for 93 charge points for a 12-month period up to September 2027, for the estimated concession revenue value of £152,813. The current end date is 30 September 2026.

In accordance with Contract Standing Order E2, the Director of Environment and Sustainability can authorise the extension and in line with F3 can grant the waiver to implement the extension subject to agreement by the Executive Director Corporate Services. Officer agreement of the waiver will be sought separately via the online waiver process.

Decision

THAT the Director of Environment and Sustainability:
 

1. Agrees an extension of the contracts with Ubitricity Distributed Energy Systems UK Ltd for the provision of operation, management and decommissioning of lamp column Electric Vehicle Charge Points for a period of 12 months for the estimated total concession value of £237,418 for the 155 charge points contract, and £152,813 for the 93 charge points contract, up to September 2027.
2. Grants a waiver of Contract Standing Order C2.1 in order to extend the contracts, subject to approval of the Executive Director Corporate Services as required under Contract Standing Order E2.2 and in line with Contract Standing Order F3.3.