Assessment

Cost

On costs, it is clear that there will be higher installation costs in island locations but the evidence does demonstrate that, particularly for new domestic buildings, that it is likely not to be significantly higher (except in rare circumstances) than those developments on the mainland. Additionally, land prices on the islands do tend to be, on average, cheaper than in more urban locations and the cost of installing an EV charge point is, in most cases, highly unlikely to take the overall cost of a development to a point where it is unviable.

We also recognise that there is unique supply-chain considerations when it comes to new developments in island locations. This will not be unique to EV charge point installation – there are generally higher labour and material costs for developments as a whole - but it is reflected in the potentially higher cost of installation for some island developments.

That being said, it is clear that there is a minimal risk that this could lead to unviable developments in island locations, as well as remote and rural communities, but it is also a minimal risk in the densely populated urban areas of Scotland, but for different reasons – e.g. viability relating to land costs and grid capacity rather than construction costs. Therefore, whilst the cause of the risk is different, it is a risk across many parts of Scotland, not just in island locations.

As demonstrated in the islands case study in the ClimateXChange research paper (Hypothetical Case Study 6) it is also cheaper to install charge points, and the associated infrastructure, at the point of construction versus the cost of retrofitting at a later date. Proposing a different approach for developments on the islands would leave those communities behind with regard to EV infrastructure and any future efforts to build-up the infrastructure would be significantly more costly due to the increased cost of retrofitting.

Grid Capacity

It is clear that there will be unique grid capacity challenges in some island locations and where localised solutions to installation of charge points are cost prohibitive in residential developments, there will not be the need to install charge points if the cost of the grid connection is above £2000 or 7% of the total cost of the development for buildings undergoing renovation. However, ducting infrastructure will still be provided to allow building owners to undertake ‘no dig’ installation of charge points when grid constraints or connection costs are within a viable margin.

Again, this is not a challenge unique to developments in island locations. There will be urban developments where grid constraints will be a concern for the viability of the development and need to factored in during the planning stage.

In addition, the additional power requirements of 7kW EV charge points themselves, particularly with the advent, and increased usage, of smart meters, is unlikely to put undue pressure on the power supply for the vast majority of new developments.

Island Specific Approach

With regard to the points raised around having different minimal requirements for new developments in island locations, the nature of building regulations and their application as national standards does mean that requirements are applied equally across all Scottish local authority areas.

As building regulations exist to serve the public interest by delivering new developments which meet provisions set out under the Act it is difficult for regulation to set lesser provisions on a geographical basis, as this may simply result in a poorer outcome from new developments.

In addition, given the Scottish Government’s ambition to decarbonise transport by 2045, we must provide equitable net zero transport infrastructure across the whole of Scotland and ensure no community is left behind. If we were to propose a solution, other than through Building Standards, that allowed for localised requirements for EV charge point provision, there would, in all likelihood, be a disparity of EV charging infrastructure provision across the whole of Scotland – it would not be equitable for every new home with a parking space in Fife to have an EV charge point but only every third new home on the Isle of Bute to have an EV charge point.

We want to encourage EV uptake and, as previously highlighted, to do so we must improve the availability and convenience of EV charging infrastructure across the whole of Scotland. This means ensuring that, no matter where anyone may live or work in Scotland, there is the same minimal provision so that everyone is able to charge whilst at home, at work or whilst they are out and about.