On Friday 23 October, around 70 customers, operators, suppliers and partners came to Welch Group’s Duxford base to see the new megawatt charging hub working, and to hear what electric freight is already doing for the business.
Welch Group has officially opened its megawatt-powered charging hub for electric HGVs at Duxford. It is the only hub of its kind in the East of England. The hub runs on Voltempo’s British-designed and manufactured megawatt HyperCharging system and charges Welch’s fleet of six 42-tonne Renault eHGVs. Two more trucks are due before the end of the year.
It is already paying off. Per 100km, delivering freight with an eHGV now costs about half as much as using a diesel truck.
A day about where freight goes next
The ‘Powering the Future of Freight’ event brought together suppliers, operators and customers. Representatives from the local council, central government transport officials, Innovate UK and Welch’s project partners also attended.
Managing director Chris Welch opened the day by explaining the decisions behind Welch’s move to electric:
- Buying the six Renault eHGVs outright rather than leasing them
- Building an award-winning partnership with British Antarctic Survey (BAS), moving shipments from Bar Hill to Harwich and on to BAS sites
- Installing £250k megawatt charging hubs at both the Duxford and Bedford sites
- Committing to switch the entire 70-vehicle fleet to electric
Dan Thorp, CEO of Cambridge Ahead, spoke next about how the region’s transport infrastructure could deliver sustainability from end to end.
“The Welch Group is a local business innovating at the frontier of electric and autonomous freight, something which is a real asset for our transport planners and logistics network.”
Simon Lancaster, head of supply chain logistics at BAS, and Paul Dunn, BAS head of facilities, then explained what BAS does and how Welch Group supports its net zero supply chain.
After lunch, Michael Boxwell, founder and corporate development officer at Voltempo, joined Jamie Sands, Welch’s head of solutions, for a fireside chat on the future of freight and the road ahead. Guests then went out to the hub to watch a live charging demonstration.
Why the numbers add up
Chris said the switch had been a steep learning curve, and it is now delivering results:
“We’re going from zero to eight electric vehicles by the end of the year: it’s been quite an experience with a lot of learning, but now the chargers are in and work really well.
“The charging hubs use the same technology as cars, so it’s CCS sockets. The CCS socket is good for up to 750kW. Our charging system is 375kW, which is above what anything can currently take – the highest is a DAF lorry which is 250kW, so it’s a 90-minute charge if it’s flat.”
Running costs are where the case for electric is strongest. Welch buys diesel in bulk, and the price has gone from £1.05 a litre in January to £1.55, a 50% rise this year. Over the same period, the cost of electricity has gone down.
“It’s 18p a kilowatt at night to charge up, and 26p per kilowatt in the day. For context, with diesel using the new metric of kW per 100km, the price for diesel is equivalent to 37p per kilowatt.”
Chris Welch, Managing Director
Celebrating heritage and partnership
The day also saw the opening of the Welch Transport Heritage Centre at Duxford, which celebrates a company history going back to 1934. The team also showed off the partnership award Welch’s shared with British Antarctic Survey at the recent Motor Transport Awards.
The Addenbrooke’s Charity Trust (ACT) team came along with one of their Panda Meander pandas. Welch’s has been delivering the panda sculptures to artists across the region ahead of the Cambridge Panda Meander art trail, which starts in March 2027.
“We’re proud to be the logistics partner for the ACT Panda Meander trail. We’ve been storing the pandas safely in our warehouse and now they’re out with the artists, the creative part begins. We can’t wait to see how they turn out, and to help bring them back together for the trail around Cambridge next spring.”
Chris Welch
Charge at Duxford
To find out more about charging your business fleet vehicles at our Duxford hub, or about Welch’s servicing facilities, please contact our Head of Commercial: mattmoore@welchgroup.co.uk
If you’re interested in finding out more about how net zero, eHGVs and autonomous vehicles can transform the logistics industry, please contact our MD: chriswelch@welchgroup.co.uk
As featured in the Cambridge Independent, 29 October 2026.
