Transport + Energy interviews Neil Mahapatra, the CEO of rapid electric vehicle (EV) charging firm Zapgo, about its business and plans for the future.
- Tell us about your business…
Zapgo is a charge point operator delivering rapid and reliable charging to hand-picked destinations across the UK. We’re focused on boosting EV charging availability in areas underserved by existing charging infrastructure to ensure that no part of the UK is left behind. Our first sites are now operational, and we have many more to follow in 2026 and beyond.
We are a fully funded company, and our model is designed for simplicity. We manage the entire end-to-end process, install our chargers at no cost to landlords, and cover all ongoing maintenance and customer support. Once our chargers are live, landlords begin to earn a revenue from day one.
- Can you tell us more about the current challenges and opportunities around charging
We’re approaching an adoption chasm: a significant gap between enthusiastic early adopters of EVs and the broader mainstream market that remains hesitant to switch immediately to EVs.
We see our role as not only delivering reliable, accessible infrastructure across the UK to accelerate EV uptake, but also helping to reassure those who may be hesitant about making the switch.
To boost consumer confidence, it is therefore essential that EV charging infrastructure is rolled out in the places where it is needed most. This will ensure that no part of the country is left behind in the EV transition.
- What are your decarbonisation goals and net zero targets as a company, both in the near term and by 2050?
We’re focused on continuing the growth of Zapgo’s network through emphasising the benefits to landlords and building a charging network that builds confidence among drivers in EV charging in the UK. As a new Charge Point Operator (CPO), we’ve considered decarbonisation from day one, with all our electricity coming from renewable sources, and a 100% electric company car fleet.
- In what ways have you collaborated with others – whether transport or energy companies, and public or private sector?
We have focused on ensuring that we are working with the right landlords to deliver our strategy of addressing charging gaps by deploying charging to destinations in underserved communities. So far, we are working with a diverse range of partners including sports clubs, hospitality venues, hotels, retail and community-focused destinations.
Everything we do is guided by our customers and the communities in which we operate, so working closely with our landlord host network to provide much-needed infrastructure in destinations that often serve as local gathering points is a core part of our strategy.
At our charging site at the Stanley Club, an important community hub which has brought local people together for over 100 years, we provided £10,000 in upfront funding to facilitate essential building renovations and upgrades. This funding, in addition to a revenue share generated from every charge, will help the Club to continue to serve as a vital community space well into the future.
- What is your biggest overall challenge as a company when it comes to transport and energy?
Grid and planning delays are a common variable and represent a significant operational challenge for CPOs like us. Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) frequently don’t meet timelines, delaying delivery.
It’s in the interests of the travelling public and communities in less well served parts of the UK that broader UK energy infrastructure reform is made a key public policy priority, with stricter governance and timelines mandated on DNOs to provide communities and CPOs alike with greater certainty about timeframes for delivery. Improving the grid connection process is a key step in making EV adoption a realistic option for everyone.
- What policy changes or support would you like from the UK Government?
Financial incentives, operational capability and regulatory issues remain the biggest barriers to the rollout of EV infrastructure in the UK.
A large amount of capex has been invested in the sector – but billions more in private investment capital will be required to meet the UK’s target of having 300,000 chargers in place by 2030. A key priority for the Government should be to ensure that investors can have greater certainty and confidence to invest in the sector. Grid delays and planning issues remain significant challenges that create uncertainty and slow delivery. Stricter governance and clearer timelines for grid connections are essential if the UK is to unlock the critically important private capital that is needed to drive forward EV adoption.
Execution capability is critical, and CPOs need a team that are truly expert in building infrastructure – at Zapgo we’re lucky to have an expert team that has decades of combined experience in electric vehicles, broadband and construction.
Stronger and better-focused incentives are needed to encourage CPOs to want and be able to afford to develop infrastructure; for consumers to have the confidence to buy EVs; and for DNOs and wider energy infrastructure providers to make the required investment in the grid in a timely way.
We welcome the UK Government’s measures in the Budget in relation to Business Rates relief to help keep consumer costs down in the EV sector. There is a legitimate debate about how the Treasury may best manage the revenue erosion related to reducing fuel duty as more drivers switch to EVs. Uncertainty, regulatory changes and mixed messaging risk having an adverse impact on consumer sentiment, and we look forward to playing our part in the debate about how best to support consumer confidence in the EV sector.
- How do you see the charging sector changing and progressing in the next 5, 10, 15 years?
We are still in the early stages of the densification of the UK’s EV charging network. There are thousands of locations just waiting for chargers to be deployed and where drivers are waiting for chargers to arrive so they can transition to EV with confidence.
Battery technology will evolve, which may unlock further opportunities for our long-term destination charging strategy, allowing us to bring the benefits of Zapgo to even more communities. In parallel, we hope to see the sector benefiting from an increased focus on grid reform and DNO certainty to enable private investment to continue with confidence to improve charging opportunities for EV drivers.
