Australian government co-funds rollout of 400 public EV charge points

The Australian government will partially fund the rollout of more than 400 privately operated electric car fast-charging stations at a cost of around $25 million.

The cash comes from the Future Fuels Fund, with the purse strings held by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

Five successful applicants for grants from the first round of ARENA funding are Evie Networks, Ampol, Engie, Chargefox, and Electric Highways Tasmania.

The initial allocation for round one of funding was $16.5 million, but ARENA says it elected to bump this to $24.55m “based on the high merit of applicants”.

Together the five applicants are expected to deliver 403 new DC stations, each capable of charging at least two vehicles concurrently. The delivery time frame remains unclear.

Charging stations are to be built across eight geographic regions covering 14 of Australia’s most populous cities. These include all capitals and regional centres including Geelong, Newcastle, Wollongong and the Sunshine Coast.

Each location will receive a minimum of eight new fast-charging stations “to drive the uptake of EVs in regional locations”, ARENA states.

For background, the Future Fuels Fund is a $71.9 million cash pile announced in the 2020-21 federal budget, with a stated aim “to remove barriers to the uptake of new vehicle technologies”.

ARENA says subsequent rounds will focus on increasing EV charging capacity in regional areas.

“As the costs of electric vehicles come down, more consumers and fleet users are looking to go electric. Expanding the fast charging network will make it easier than ever to drive an EV in Australia,” said ARENA chief executive Darren Miller.

“The proposals we received were of such high quality, we were compelled to increase the funding. We’re delighted to be able to support more than 400 charging stations across the country.”

The five winning proposals in brief are:

Evie Networks:

• Total cost of $25.61m, of which $8.85m comes from ARENA.
• Evie Networks, working with partners Tritium and ActewAGL (ACT), will deliver 158 fast charging stations across eight regions in Australia.
• Each station will provide at least two designated parking spots for EV charging and will have a capacity of at least 100kW.

Ampol:

• Total cost of $26.81m, of which $7.05m comes from ARENA.
• Ampol will use its branded service station network nationally to deliver more than 100 fast charging stations across four regions in Australia.
• Will install a network of public fast-charging stations in the following locations: Sydney, Wollongong, Central Coast, Newcastle, Melbourne, Geelong, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Perth.
• Each station will provide at least two designated parking spots for EV charging and will have a capacity of at least 100kW.

Engie:

• Total cost of $22.64m, of which $6.85m comes from ARENA.
• Engie, with partners ISimply Energy, JET Charge Pty Ltd, and its site partners, will deliver 103 fast charging stations across four regions in Australia: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, and Victoria.
• Each station will provide at least two designated parking spots for EV charging and will have a capacity of at least 100kW.

Chargefox:

• Total cost of $3.77m, of which $1.4m comes from ARENA.
• Chargefox will deliver 16 fast charging stations across Adelaide and Perth.
• Each station will provide at least two designated parking spots for EV charging and will have a capacity of at least 100kW.
• MORE: Chargefox adding 4000 EV chargers by 2025

Electric Highways Tasmania:

• Total cost of $1.05m, of which $1.05m comes from ARENA
• Electric Highway Tasmania (EHT), working with project partners Chargefox and Kingborough Council, will deliver five electric vehicle fast charging stations in Hobart.
• Each station will provide at least two designated parking spots for EV charging and will have a capacity of at least 100kW.

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