NSW and Victorian Politicians Pledge to Build Hundreds of EV Charging Stations

An electric car is seen recharging at an ActewAGL charging station in Canberra, Australia, on March 21, 2022. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

Politicians in New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria have promised to build hundreds of charging locations in an attempt to boost the number of electric vehicles (EVs) in the two Australian states.

On Oct. 23, the NSW government announced a $39.4 million (US$24.8 million) project to establish over 500 fast and ultra-fast electric vehicle charging bays in cities and on highways across the state.

It said that when completed, the charging stations could replenish 60 percent of modern EV batteries in 15 minutes.

The announcement is followed by Victorian opposition parties’ promise to add 600 EV charging stations if it wins the state election in November.

The EV Council, a peak body representing the electric vehicle industry in Australia, said if both projects were implemented, there would be a boost to the network of public electric vehicle charging stations in the country.

NSW Treasurer Matt Kean said the $39.4 million project was the first of the three funding rounds from the state’s Fast Charging Grants program, with the state government aiming to erect hundreds more stations in the upcoming years.

“This investment will see the largest, fastest and most comprehensive public EV charging network in Australia,” Kean said.

“The ultra-fast chargers will be able to charge modern EVs from 20 percent to 80 percent in around 15 minutes, and all stations will be fully powered with renewable energy.”

The Tesla electric car charging station in a car park in Sydney, Australia, on April 14, 2015. Ben Rushton/Getty Images

The treasurer said the chargers would be built by Ampol, BP, Evie Networks, Tesla, the NRMA and Zeus Renewables in 86 locations across NSW in the next two years.

According to the EV Council’s State of Electric Vehicles report, Australia had 2147 public EV charging stations as of June 2022, an increase of 15 percent compared to early 2021.

NSW was leading the country with 347 charging locations, followed by Victoria, Queensland, and Western Australia.

Victorian Opposition Parties’ Promise

In their latest election promise, the Liberal and National parties have pledged to spend $50 million to build 600 EV charging stations in Victoria.

Victorian Liberal Party Deputy Leader David Southwick said the project would help increase the number of EVs in the state.

“By rolling out an extra 600 charging stations across the state, we will boost charging access and reduce the barriers to entering the electric vehicle market,” he said.

“The more electric vehicles we have on our roads, the more Victorians can save on spiralling fuel costs, and we can achieve our emissions reduction targets.”

At the same time, Coalition promised to put Victoria’s electric vehicles tax on hold until 2027, which was expected to cost the state budget $82.2 million.

The pushes for more EV charging stations come as the number of electric cars sold in Australia rose by 65 percent in the past 12 months, with Tesla remaining the most popular EV brand.