FLINTSHIRE has formally gone ‘green.’

Electric vehicle charging points have been launched in the car park of a town's retail store - and councillors couldn't be happier.

With the government's plan to eliminate diesel cars by 2040, and ever-crunching legislation from EU legislators on carbon emissions, Holywell's welcoming of electric vehicles (EV's) means the town is gearing up for a better future.

It's about transforming Holywell into a viable and desirable place to be, according to Cllr Ted Palmer.

The initiative has been on the cards for Holywell Town Council for months, having led various discussions on where to locate the charging point.

Some suggestions include the car park outside Home Bargains, or the easily-accessible bay behind the Boar's Head, leading on to Rue St Gregoire.

EV owners can now charge their futuristic motors at Tesco, in Holywell.

The location, according to councillors, will encourage both tourists and residents to park up, pop in their charging leads, and wander around local shops and businesses while your Tesla Model S or Nissan Leaf sources power from the grid.

Tesco store's large power frame means it's car park is the perfect location to consume the power - Americans have started having inklings about electric car destroying their national grid.

At Wednesday's official unveiling of the charging points - which consists of one 'post' with two access points that can be used simultaneously - Cllr Palmer said the idea originally came from a customer of his.

The councillor and local barber said: "This customer has an electric car, and said we need electric charging points in Holywell because the nearest is up at the Caerwys roundabout and at Asda supermarket in Queensferry."

His customer has a point. With 155,000 EV's registered in the UK at the moment - and over 4,000 being registered every month - records show there are only around 17,400 public charging points in the country.

While Holywell's electric vehicle initiative aims to increase tourism and trade in the town, Cllr Palmer believes it's not about making a profit from the new facility.

He said: "I don't think it's about how many people will use it. We're the first town in Flintshire to do something like this, and it is definitely the way forward. You can see that more hybrid cars are coming on roads and in line with that, we are trying to think forward all the time."

This was heightened by European Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska's announcement this summer that diesel cars are a "thing of the past" and that they will soon disappear from our roads quicker than you can say 'thermodynamic efficiency.'

Cllr Palmer added: "Us, being an innovative town council, decided to go ahead with it and seek the funding. We pride ourselves in trying to think forward all the time. The whole ethos is, it's another reason to come to Holywell."

Tesco Bags of Help is to thank for funding this eco mission, with £2,000 being raised over two months through shoppers dropping reward tokens into a voting box for their favourite local scheme.

Cllr Lynda Carter who was also at the launch, said the council is researching an "electric vehicle map," to put Holywell "out there" and let motorists know there are vehicle charging facilities within the town.

Prices vary for individual cars as they all have different batteries, according to Howard Jones, of All Electric in Greenfield who fitted the point.

He said: "The normal domestic chargers, you would use to charge overnight, but here you can give it a good boost in an hour. It's a bigger supply here than it is in your own house. It's totally safe to leave it charging while you shop - the car electronically talks to the charge point, when to turn off, if there's a fault."

Town Mayor Cllr Rosetta Dolphin added that this charging point is "not for profit" and that it's cheaper than going to the commercial points in other areas.

Cllr Carolyn Thomas, streetscene and countryside said: "I would like to congratulate Holywell Town Council on this great initiative that will not only encourage drivers of electric vehicles to spend time in Holywell while their vehicle is being charged, but will also prompt many other motorists to consider the benefits of electric vehicles."