Maxol has said that the slow uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) in Northern Ireland could force the group to rethink its charging network roll out plans.
It launched the first dedicated ultra rapid charging hub in Kinnegar, Co Down in 2022 and followed this with another charging hub in Braid River, Ballymena in 2023.
The fuel and convenience retailer’s investment strategy includes the roll out of more ultra rapid EV hubs, but group CEO Brian Donaldson has said that the slow uptake in EVs in Northern Ireland could impact the speed at which its network will develop in the future.
Mr Donaldson said: “Sales of [EVs] in Northern Ireland have been growing but we are monitoring sales closely as the move to EVs is lower than in other parts of the UK and Ireland.”
According to the Electric Vehicle Association NI (EVANI) despite recent growth in EV sales, NI still lags behind the other UK regions and the Republic of Ireland.
According to figures published in June by EVANI, uptake in NI is only 11.6% compared to a 16.5% average in the UK and 18.7% in the Republic.
Read more
Mr Donaldson continued: “While we recognise that our sector has a key role to play in supporting EV adoption, we are faced with significant challenges.
“Planning delays and access to power capacity have been issues from day one, but now we are also concerned about developing our charging network too quickly, when the demand isn’t there. EV technology is evolving continuously, so we have to manage the pace of our own development to safeguard against becoming outdated too soon.
“The market is experiencing a chicken and egg conundrum and all stakeholders, particularly government, need to revisit ways in which drivers can be better incentivised to make the switch to electric.
“Notwithstanding, we will open our next Ultra Rapid EV hub in Rathnew and a number of other sites, where we can see the demand, are being considered.”
This comes as the group revealed its financial results for 2023.
It reported a turnover of £625 million for 2023, a £99 million drop from the £724 million recorded in 2022. This was attributed to a drop in the price of fuel.
The group’s profit after tax stood at £22.7 million, down from £31.2 million in 2022, which had been boosted by a one-off gain from the sale of a prime property in Dublin.
Mr Donaldson said that despite continuous investment in its operations and the challenges of the last four years, which included the Covid pandemic, inflation, Brexit and global geo-political unrest, the group had finished the year “in a strong financial position, with no net bank debt and a substantial cash surplus”.
“More than 40% of Maxol’s gross profit now comes from non-fuel sales, which is central to the repositioning of the company as a leading convenience retailer,” added Mr Donaldson.
“Income from convenience retail and food and car washing together with new mobility offerings have grown significantly in importance for the group.”
This follows an investment of over £50million in its network. Mr Donaldson added that despite intense competition in the retail convenience market, Maxol has seen customers continue to shop locally, favouring convenience and with average transactional spend up.