SUSTAINABLE energy company GRIDSERVE has teamed up with SMT GB to trial the Volvo ECR25 Electric excavator in the construction of its new High Power Electric Super Hub at Moto Scotch Corner Services on the A1(M) south of Darlington.
GRIDSERVE used the 2.5-tonne electric machine supplied by SMT GB to dig trenches for the transformers, power banks, charging units, and cabling to connect 12 new 350kW electric vehicle (EV) chargers to the grid.
These high-power chargers are part of GRIDSERVE’s expansion plans as it seeks to facilitate the shift to electric motoring.
GRIDSERVE is a provider of public EV charging, with its electric highway covering 80% of UK motorways through over 300 charging points at service stations and other locations. By 2025, the company has committed to installing 5,000 new high-power chargers, including at new Electric Super Hubs and Electric Forecourts.
The business operates its own solar and battery farms to replace the energy drawn from the grid by its network of public chargers with 100% net zero carbon energy. The use of an electric excavator is designed to help ensure the installation aspect of its operations is sustainable too.
“Our CEO, Toddington Harper, attended MOVE in 2022, which is an exhibition for innovation in sustainable transport, and saw the Volvo electric excavator,” said Richard Hallas, chief delivery officer at GRIDSERVE. “He was very impressed and is always thinking about how we can innovate and reduce greenhouse gas emissions throughout the value chain. So we had some discussions with SMT GB about how it might work for us, and here we are.”
To guarantee the ECR25 Electric is truly emission-free, GRIDSERVE powered it from one of its Solar Energy Centres (SEC), which is a portable, modular unit topped with solar panels that can be transported to construction sites to generate and store solar power.
Using the SEC and a standard charging cable, GRIDSERVE charged the ECR25 Electric excavator with clean, renewable energy in just one hour so that it can complete a four-hour shift.
“Four hours of continuous operation is longer than we would need in a normal day, and it is so easy to charge,” Richard added. “We can charge it over lunch or overnight so it’s ready for the guys to use whenever they need it – and we’re not using any fossil fuels at all, just the natural energy we get from the sun on site.”
The SEC can predict energy consumption and optimise generation and storage, along with an HVO back-up generator as a ‘last resort’.
Powered by the SEC, the Volvo ECR25 Electric is said to have worked well on the Electric Super Hub construction site at Moto Scotch Corner Services. GRIDSERVE has been pleased with the excavator’s quiet and zero emission operation.
“Health and safety on site is paramount for us,” Richard stated. “We’re very keen on making sure everybody is working safely, and by not having that diesel engine noise we can communicate more easily and clearly without the need for radios or signals. The lack of diesel exhaust fumes is also more pleasant and comfortable for all the people who are working here.”
Operator Taylor Mence added, “It’s my first time driving an electric digger and it’s got the same pull and power as a diesel machine, just without the fumes and noise, which is a lot better. Normally, when I’ve got my banksman screaming at me and I can’t hear a word he is saying over the engine, I have to switch the machine off, but you don’t have that problem with an electric one.”
Richard praised the ECR25 Electric’s maintenance requirements. “Because it’s electric, you don’t need to do oil and filter changes after so many hours. So, there’s less downtime and you don’t have to worry about how you’re going to dispose of the oil sustainably. You just have to make sure it’s charged, and it’ll tell you if there are any faults on it that need addressing.
“I think there is some education to be done to let people know just how easy electric machines are to use, charge, and maintain. A lot of people can be very set in their ways and think ‘I don’t want to go electric, I don’t own an electric car and I don’t know it works’ but it’s so straightforward.”
