Strategic Charging Infrastructure Scheme

National Highways is working in collaboration with the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV), a joint unit between the Department for Transport and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, to strengthen electricity network capacity to selected motorway service areas (MSA) in England through the Strategic Charging Infrastructure (SCI) Scheme. The transition to zero-emission vehicles is expected to drive significant growth in demand for electric vehicle (EV) charging at MSAs.

This will require a visible and functional charging network across the motorway network to support current and future EV drivers and provide confidence when undertaking long-distance journeys. However, at several locations, the deployment of charging infrastructure is constrained by the existing electricity network capacity.

In some cases, the cost of grid upgrades to meet future demand is not commercially viable for industry and represents a key barrier to the provision of additional EV charging infrastructure. The SCI Scheme will support the development of a strong open-access (can be used with any EV vehicle regardless of manufacturer) EV charging network across the motorway network by strengthening electricity network infrastructure to selected MSAs where investment is not commercially viable.

The resulting network capacity will then be available to firms installing EV charging at the site at a subsided and commercially viable price. An indicative allocation of £190 million has been made for the scheme.

Enabling civils works, such as land preparation and substation housing, to ensure all funded sites meet a minimum standard at adoption and connection stage, may also be within scope of the packages where required. Further details are provided within a separate scope document that can be accessed via this link: https://highways.sharepoint.com/:f:/s/NationalHighwaysPro... Following completion of Phase 1 Pre-Market Engagement, which focused on understanding supplier capability, National Highways is undertaking Phase 2 of Pre-Market Engagement to seek supplier feedback on potential delivery, packaging, commercial, evaluation and route to market options for the SCI Scheme.

The objective of this engagement is to gather market feedback that will help National Highways refine its approach to best support the effective delivery of the SCI Scheme, whilst maximising market participation, supporting private sector investment, and delivering value for money. The questionnaire for interested suppliers to complete is available via this link: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/P3t3TXQUUN.

The information provided in response to this questionnaire will be collected, processed and stored solely for the purposes of designing and progressing the SCI Scheme. The information provided in the response to the Pre-Market Engagement questionnaire will not constitute a formal tender response and will not be used to evaluate suppliers as part of any future procurement process.

Responses will be used solely to inform the development of the SCI Scheme procurement strategy, including the delivery, packaging, commercial and route-to-market approaches. National Highways thanks you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire. This pre-market notice will be open for a calendar month, ending on 30 October 2026.