Throbed by Elon Musk, they launch a European charging network much clearer than Tesla
Symbol of a turning point in electric recharging: after the dismissal of the superchargers team by Elon Musk, some alumni of Tesla launch their own network. Objective: to target pros, not individuals. © Shutershock
This is one of the most absurd decisions taken by Elon Musk in recent years, and there is however competition. In 2023, Tesla’s boss decided to dismiss the entire team in charge of the Supercharger charging network. Without notice. Thank you, goodbye. And among the trips, three names: Harry Fox, Connor Selwood and Hugh Leckie. Three alumni from the Tesla Uk house, who had deployed more than 100 charging stations in the United Kingdom and Ireland together. Far from ruminating, they rebounded. Better still: they launched Hubber.
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Ancients of Tesla create Hubber, a new rapid charging solution for urban taxis
The first ultra-fast charging stations were designed for highways and the fear of breaking down. But today, real pressure is exercised in cities.
Their idea is simple and terribly well felt: in big cities, it is taxis, VTCs, deliverers and shuttles that turn in a loop; Not the frames that connect their Model Y in the garage in the evening. These pros vehicles load up to five times more often than a private vehicle, and their cruel lack, it is rapid access to power.
A first charging site will be created in London © Shutershock
Then Hubber tackles this black hole: the lack of fast and reliable charging infrastructure in urban areas. The principle? Converting warehouses, old service stations or industrial wasteland in powerful charging hubs, well connected to the electricity network, capable of turning a fleet of vehicles at full speed.
Harry Fox, Connor Selwood and Hugh Leckie © Hubber
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First site: Forest Hill, south of London, which opens on August 20 with 12 terminals, including several at 300 kW. A free recharge week is planned for the launch.
Pragmatic vision, rapid execution
With their experience at Tesla, the founders of Hubber know what the deployment of a powerful network involves: a fine control of connections to the electrical network, strategic implantation choices, and a volume logic. Their approach is not intended to seduce the motorist on the squirt with an organic coffee and free Wi-Fi, but to meet a professional need: to recharge quickly, efficiently, start again.
It is the fleets that roll the most – taxis, VTC, utility, bus – which go into high speed, even though urban infrastructure is delayed. Powerful, well -sized reload hubs are essential to ensure effective, continuous and scalable operations. However, delays accumulate, while the request explodes. It is precisely this lack that Hubber intends to fill.
Hubber begins in London, but does not intend to stop there. With 60 million pounds in pockets and a model already tested on the ground by its founders at Tesla, the young shoot aims for rapid expansion in other major European metropolises, where the same problems arise: rare limits, professional fleets, saturated or unsuitable network.
Berlin, Paris, Madrid or Milan? Nothing has yet been officially announced, but everything indicates that the elders of Tesla see beyond the English Channel. And for good reason: dense city centers, poorly equipped with fast recharge, are legion on the continent. An boon for an agile actor, specializing in the conversions of urban wasteland into powerful hubs.
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