The site was formally opened on 15 January 2026 and is the first location in the UK equipped with a Megawatt Charging System (MCS)-ready charger designed specifically for heavy-duty freight operations.
The charging hub at East Midlands Gateway features six DC charging bays, all supplied by a single megawatt-scale Voltempo HyperCharger pod. The system can dynamically distribute up to one megawatt of power across multiple vehicles, allowing flexible charging depending on operational needs.
According to the project partners, the infrastructure is capable of supporting future eHGVs with charging times of under 30 minutes, depending on vehicle specifications and battery size. The system is designed to scale, meaning additional chargepoints can be added as fleet size and power demand increase.
The chargers are OCPP 2.0+ compliant and support Plug and Charge functionality. For drivers, the process is automated: vehicles are authenticated via the operator’s fleet system, with no payment terminal required on site.
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First of a wider rollout
The East Midlands installation is the first of Voltempo’s megawatt-scale HyperChargers to be deployed under eFREIGHT 2030. The programme plans to roll out 35 depot-based charging hubs across the UK.
eFREIGHT 2030 is part of the government-backed Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator (ZEHID) Programme, funded by the Department for Transport and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK. The total ZEHID funding envelope amounts to £200 million.
Chris McDonald, Minister for Industry in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) attends the formal opening of the UK’s first megawatt-scale eHGV charging hub at Kuehne+Nagel East Midlands Gateway as part of eFREIGHT 2030
At the Kuehne+Nagel site, the charging hub will initially support a fleet of twelve electric HGVs deployed as part of the ZEHID project. These include battery-electric models from DAF Trucks and Renault Trucks, operating on regional, national and selected international routes.
The vehicles are being used to collect real-world operational data for the eFREIGHT 2030 programme. This includes information on energy consumption, range, charging patterns and total cost of operation — data points that remain critical for fleet operators assessing the commercial viability of electric long-haul and regional trucking.
Why East Midlands Gateway?
Kuehne+Nagel’s East Midlands Gateway facility serves as the company’s main UK road logistics hub. The 200,000 sq ft site includes 67 loading docks and handles a broad mix of freight, including pharmaceuticals, high-tech goods and groupage consignments.
Its location next to the M1 motorway and close to East Midlands Airport makes it one of the UK’s most connected logistics sites. For the eFREIGHT 2030 partners, this makes it a suitable testbed for electric HGV operations in a high-throughput, time-critical environment.
British-designed charging technology
Voltempo’s HyperCharger system has been designed and manufactured in the UK, with production based in Tyseley, East Birmingham. The company recently became eligible for Made in Britain membership, reflecting that the system is substantially designed, engineered and assembled domestically.
Each HyperCharger can supply up to six vehicles simultaneously, with power allocation managed dynamically to match vehicle departure times and operational priorities. According to Voltempo, this approach aims to reduce vehicle dwell time while making more efficient use of available grid capacity.
