More than 400 electric vehicle charging stations to be rolled out Australia-wide in new government-backed scheme

A total of 403 new electric vehicle fast charging stations are set to be rolled out across Australia, the Federal Government has announced.

The facilities will be built across eight geographic regions, in every capital city as well as Geelong, Newcastle, Wollongong and the Sunshine Coast. Each station will be capable of charging at least two vehicles simultaneously at a rate of 50kW or higher.

Funded via the national Future Fuels Fund, $25 million worth of construction contracts have been allocated to five private firms: Evie Networks, Ampol, Engie, Chargefox, and Electric Highways Tasmania.

Evie Networks will build 158 charging stations across all eight regions at a cost of $8.85 million, petroleum-giant Ampol (previously branded Caltex) will build 121 stations across four regions at a cost of $7.05 million, Engie will build 103 stations across four regions at a cost of $6.85 million, Chargefox will build 16 stations across two regions at a cost of $1.4 million, and Electric Highways Tasmania will built five stations in one region at a cost of $400,000.  

A timeline for project completion is yet to be announced. Drive has reached out for further information, and this story will be updated when more information becomes available.

The Federal Government claims the scheme will lead to a seven-fold increase in the number of fast-charging facilities in major cities, however data from the Electric Vehicle Council suggests Australia currently has approximately 158 sites capable of providing an energy flow above 25kW (referred to as 'level 3' chargers).

Based off this information, the investment will represent an increase of approximately 250 per cent nation-wide.