Scottish Government backs 1,770 new EV charge points with £6.3m funding

The Scottish Government has awarded £6.3m to eight local authorities to expand public charging infrastructure across the south of Scotland.

The funding, the final award from the £30m Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund, will support the installation of 1,770 charge points in partnership with the private sector.

The project is being led by City of Edinburgh Council and includes Clackmannanshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Falkirk, Fife, Midlothian, Scottish Borders and West Lothian councils.

Scotland already has more than 7,100 public charge points, having met its original 6,000 target two years ahead of schedule in October 2024.

Fiona Hyslop, cabinet secretary for transport, said: “I’m pleased to confirm the final award of £6.3m from our £30m Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund, which will help attract further private investment in our publicly accessible EV charging network.

“Our ambition to enable the delivery 24,000 additional public charge points by 2030 cannot be met without significant backing from the private sector.

“The Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund was designed to encourage this investment, meaning public funding can be targeted for areas which are less likely to benefit from stand-alone private investment – this includes more rural parts of Scotland, some of which will be served by the south of Scotland project led by City of Edinburgh Council.”

Councillor Stephen Jenkinson, transport and environment convener at Edinburgh Council, said: “This is a significant and positive development for Edinburgh and the South of Scotland.