Two Australian companies focused on different aspects of electric-vehicle infrastructure, Tritium and Evie Networks, will pair up to deliver 300 public chargers over the next two years.
Network operator and project leader Evie will team with DC hardware company Tritium, whose 300-plus RTM 50kW DC chargers will be installed at 158 different Evie sites all over the country.
While not as powerful as Tritium’s 350kW ultra-rapid chargers, 50kW units are cheaper and easier to proliferate. These units can still add as much as 50km range in 10 minutes.
Both Tritium and Evie are backed by Australia’s St Baker Energy innovation fund, the latter to the tune of $100 million.
Evie intends to run the largest ultra-fast EV charging network in Australia, of which this project forms a part. It also holds a newly minted deal with Ampol service stations, which will take-on Evie-run chargers on a trial basis.
As detailed here, Tritium is capitalising on its expanding global footprint with a Nasdaq IPO set for quarter-four, at a valuation of around $1.5 billion.
As well as Evie, the deal is being partly paid for by the Federal Government’s Future Fuels Fund, the purse strings for which are held by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
About one third of the total $25.61 million project cost will come from ARENA.
Evie Networks was the top funding recipient (among five) in the expanded recent round, and the only company to win financing in all eight of Australia’s states and territories.
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“This is a huge vote of confidence for the team,” said Evie Networks CEO Chris Mills. “This expansion across all of Australia’s capital cities will accelerate access to quality fast EV charging for more Australians.
“Our sites will be prepared for the future with this advanced and upgradeable technology from Tritium.”
“It’s fantastic to see this scale of charging infrastructure being deployed in Australia – it will help reduce range anxiety and encourage EV uptake, which is lagging behind other developed countries,” added Tritium CEO Jane Hunter.
“We’re very pleased to see federal government support for the rollout of electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
“While the e-mobility industry does not require subsidies to support the transition from petrol cars to EVs, it benefits greatly from governments indicating their support for the change via policy statements, which enables public confidence when buying a new car.”
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