RAW Charging and Landsec unveil Chesterfield's largest ultra-rapid EV charging hub. Posted on Wednesday, Mar 25, 2026 EV charging is now live at Ravenside Retail Park in Chesterfield, with the opening of a new ultra-rapid charging hub delivered in partnership with Landsec. This marks the first RAW Charging site to open across Landsec's portfolio and forms part of a £24.5 million national rollout. Highlights. * New RAW Charging hub opens at Ravenside Retail Park as part of a £24.5 million nationwide programme * 16 ultra-rapid EV charging bays installed, offering speeds of up to 150kW * Convenient location for local shoppers, within walking distance of Chesterfield town centre and retailers including Asda Living, Currys and Hobbycraft * First site to launch across Landsec's portfolio, with 1,000 new bays set to open nationwide before 2027 Powering Chesterfield's favourite retail destination. Ravenside Retail Park is a key retail destination for Chesterfield, located within walking distance of the town centre and offering a diverse mix of electrical, homeware, fashion and dining options. Retailers include Hobbycraft, Asda Living, B&M Bargains, Poundland, Currys, PC World, Next, Pets at Home, Pizza Hut, Costa and Bensons for Beds. With the installation of 16 new EV charging bays, visitors can now enjoy everything the retail park has to offer while charging their vehicles quickly and conveniently, helping to make everyday shopping trips simpler and more sustainable. A national rollout for a greener future. The Ravenside hub is one of many sites planned as part of a nationwide rollout that will see over 1,000 new charging bays installed across 28 flagship retail and leisure destinations. Locations include Bluewater - the UK's largest retail destination EV charging hub - alongside Gunwharf Quays, White Rose Shopping Centre and Brighton Marina. The rollout will continue at pace throughout 2026, alongside a major replace-and-upgrade programme to modernise existing charging infrastructure that no longer meets current standards for speed, reliability or accessibility. These upgrades will significantly improve charge times, with some chargers delivering a meaningful top-up within typical retail dwell times of 30 minutes to 1.5 hours, ensuring a best-in-class experience for both drivers and retailers. All chargers are accessible via contactless payment and major EV charging apps, ensuring a seamless and user-friendly experience for every visitor. Neil Broadbank, Chief Commercial Officer, commented: "We're thrilled to launch our first EV charging hub with Landsec at Ravenside Retail Park. This national rollout is significant, adding 1,000 new bays across the country before 2027. By bringing reliable, rapid and accessible charging to busy retail destinations, we're making it easier for drivers to recharge as part of everyday journeys. We look forward to welcoming drivers to Ravenside and to many more Landsec sites in the months ahead."

London pre-open: stocks to drop as Middle East conflict intensifies. London stocks were set to slump at the open on Thursday as the conflict in the Middle East intensifies, and as investors mulled the latest UK jobs data and looked ahead to policy announcements from the Bank of England and the European Central Bank. The FTSE 100 was called to open down around 90 points. Meanwhile, Brent crude was up 6.3% at $114.17 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 1% higher at $97.25 after Iran attacked the world's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant in Qatar at the Ras Laffan Industrial City. Iran had warned it would target energy assets across the Gulf following Israel's attack on the South Pars gas field. Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said: "The relief in oil markets on news that Iraq would resume exports via Turkey didn't last long." On home shores, data from the Office for National Statistics showed the unemployment rate was largely unchanged in January. The rate rose by 0.1 percentage point in November to January, to 5.2%. Growth in average earnings including bonuses slowed to 3.9% over the same period, from 4.2%, in line with expectations. Stripping out bonuses, wages rose by 3.8%. Driving the growth in pay was the public sector, which saw average regular earnings growth of 5.9%. The private sector saw a 3.3% rise. As far as policy announcements go, the Bank of England and the ECB are widely expected to stand pat on rates at 3.75% and 2%, respectively. Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said: "The BoE is expected to remain on hold today, and Sharecast - Mitchells & Butlers PLC think that the nature of the inflationary threat the UK now faces, means that the BoE will try to buy some time to see how the war plays out in the coming weeks and months. "Donald Trump keeps telling Sharecast - Mitchells & Butlers PLC that the war will be over soon and a weakened Iran will lead to permanently lower oil prices, however, others are concerned that there is no end in sight to the conflict and it could drag on for months. "The MPC's dilemma at this meeting is whether to worry more about inflation or the weakening growth outlook." In corporate news, BP said it had sold its Gelsenkirchen refinery and related businesses to independent European refiner Klesch Group for an undisclosed sum, saving around $1bn in operating expenditure. The energy giant is now targeting $6.5bn to $7.5bn of structural cost reductions by 2027, equating to around 30% of its 2023 cost baseline. The refinery processes about 12 million tonnes of crude oil per year producing petrol, diesel, jet fuel, heating oil and more than 50 other products, primarily for the chemical industry. Commercial property developer Land Securities said it has struck a 192,000 square foot lease agreement with BP for its office development at Timber Square, SE1. Land Securities said the lease covered the entire 15-storey Ink building, which will become BP's new global headquarters. While financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Land Securities highlighted that, as a result of the agreement, the Timber Square development was now 54% let.

Landsec signs bp for full Timber Square Ink building in SE1. Land Securities Group plc (LON:LAND), Landsec, has agreed a 192,000 sq ft lease with bp for its office development at Timber Square, SE1. The lease covers the entire 15-storey Ink building, which will become bp's new global headquarters. The development of Timber Square completes this month and, as a result of this agreement, will be 54% let. Landsec is seeing good customer interest in the remaining Print building, reflecting the continued demand for best-in-class workspace in prime central London locations. This major lease agreement follows the announcement last week that Landsec's MYO Kings Cross development, which completed in late 2025, is already 60% let or under offer and is expected to be substantially let by the summer. In addition, Landsec is seeing healthy interest in its Thirty High development, which is due to complete later this summer, as leasing momentum for the company's prime office space remains strong. Oliver Knight, Head of Workplace at Landsec, commented: "bp is one of the biggest and most respected companies in the UK and their selection of Timber Square underscores the strength of demand for highly connected, sustainable workspace in locations like Bankside. Their new workspace brings together high environmental performance, a unique aesthetic and the modern amenities businesses need to attract and retain talent." "Our office developments and assets play a pivotal role in supporting customers to raise the bar on both workplace experience and sustainability. Alongside Timber Square we're focused on delivering Thirty High in Victoria, SW1, a much needed net-zero carbon and amenity-rich office space, into a submarket where high quality supply remains scarce."