Charge network Mer is about to disappear from the UK scene as the takeover of its UK public charging arm by rival outfit Be.EV is almost complete. 

Mer UK has emailed its customers to warn them that their RFID cards will no longer work on its charge points and that its Mer UK Connect app will shortly be turned off. 

Be.EV has been working on rebranding 1,600 Mer charge points across 450 sites in the UK since the initial announcement in February. 

The acquisition has vaulted Be.EV up the rankings in terms of outright size, but it hasn’t cracked the overall top 10 charge providers just yet. (Although Be.EV does point out that the deal has shifted it into the top 10 rapid and ultra-rapid charger providers…) How many charge points are there in the UK, you ask? That's a good question. 

Mer continues to operate its network of public chargers in ‘core’ European markets, as well as a network of chargers for its fleet clients, including the AA and Ikea. 

Mer is owned by energy producer Statkraft, which itself is wholly owned by the Norwegian state and is Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy, while Be.EV is owned by UK energy provider Octopus, which has grown since its start of operations in 2015 to turn over nearly £14bn of business in 2025.

Mer’s UK charge points are still in the process of being rebranded to Be.EV, and Octopus aims to make the points available to its Octopus Energy subscribers, who can access reduced prices per kWh with a monthly subscription payment. 

Octopus is proud of its 7pm–7am off-peak charging prices, but has sadly neglected the opportunity to use its new purchase as an opportunity to rebrand the initiative as ‘Night Mer’.