Australia invests AUS$70 million in charging infrastructure

The Australian federal government has announced plans to invest $70 million in grant funding for charging infrastructure to be administered through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

++ This article has been updated. Kindly continue reading below. ++

The new grant funding follows the release of the National Electric Vehicle Strategy (NEVS) and will be made available to Australian businesses, local governments and councils, as well as state and territory-owned corporations. Public submissions are now also being accepted by the government on Australia’s Fuel Efficiency Standard. Following the consultation, the government has announced that it will release its proposed Fuel Efficiency Standard by the end of this year.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency explained that the new funding will be focused on two parts: The initial focus will be on innovation in public charging, while the second area of focus will be on smart charging, vehicle-to-grid technology and “orchestration”. In terms of requirements, the projects must be powered by renewable energy sources, and will then be offered grants between $500,000 and $15 million. ARENA does add that the funding “needs to be matched by proponents”, however. The funding will is designed to last over a period of five years, and is part of a larger pot worth $146.1 million, “which will be delivered by ARENA over the next five years to continue to support business fleets, new technologies for heavy and long-distance vehicles, public charging and hydrogen refuelling stations, as well as innovative management of charging.”

“Today’s announcement through ARENA is in addition to the Government’s National Electric Vehicle Charging Network which will deliver a truly national EV charging network with a charger approximately every 150km on our major highways,” said climate change and energy minister Chris Bowen. “Australians know that electric and more fuel-efficient vehicles are cleaner and cheaper to run and after less than a year in Government, more Australian households and businesses can access them.”

Australia has been slow to adapt to battery-electric vehicle technology, as Bowen admits on his website: “After ten years of no EV policy at the federal level, we are playing catch-up to ensure the charging infrastructure is there when and where we need it.” The new NEVS policy aims to increase the number of EVs driving in Australia, as well as the demand for electric vehicles and required infrastructure. In addition, the policy is also looking to increase local manufacturing and recycling. Particularly for the methods to increase demand as well as the fuel standards, the politician continuously emphasizes lowering costs.

Update 24 April 2024

The Australian federal government has announced that it is helping businesses reduce the upfront costs of switching to electric vehicles with $6.2 million in funding going towards a project with Origin Energy which will see 1,000 electric vehicles made available to their business customers.

As part of the ‘Accelerate EV Fleet’ programme, Origin Energy will deliver 1,000 electric vehicles and charging infrastructure to their business customers across Australia. This announcement shortly followed the release of Australia’s first National Electric Vehicle Strategy and plans to invest $70 million in grant funding for charging infrastructure.

“The benefits of electric vehicles aren’t just for household consumers – we are already seeing enthusiasm from businesses to offer cleaner cars to their employees and drive down their fuel bill,” said Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen, who explained that this is an example of the Albanese government’s work to partner with industry. “EVs are cleaner and cheaper to run and can save thousands of dollars in annual fuel costs – the Albanese Government is thrilled to announce this investment to get more EV vehicles into the fleets of businesses that want them.”

thedriven.io, dcceew.gov.au, dcceew.gov.au (NEVS), dcceew.gov.au (fuel standards), dcceew.gov.au (update)