Introduction
Governments have made significant progress in growing public charging infrastructure for light vehicles, although substantial support is still necessary to keep up with the accelerating adoption of EVs.
EV Sales
According to the Electric Vehicle Council’s (EVC) latest State of Electric Vehicles report, sales of electric vehicles in Australia have continued to increase, with the total volume of sales in the first half of 2023 beating the total for 2022. In the months up to June, 2023, 46,624 EVs had been sold in Australia. This is almost 3 times higher than the same period in 2022 (a 269% increase).
EVs now represent 8.4% of all new cars sold in Australia. To achieve our climate targets, it is expected that more than 50% of all new cars sold in 2030 will need to be EVs. In the US the ratio of EVs to chargers is 24 to 1, according to the International Energy Agency. This has led the Biden administration to call for the opening of 500,000 charging stations by 2030 and to dedicate billions to supporting national EV infrastructure. Across Australia the ratio of EVs to chargers is 35 to 1. This ratio was calculated before the 2023 surge in EV sales.
Public Charging Infrastructure
Public charging equipment in Australia continues to expand. As at end of June 2023, the number of high-power public charging locations was 558. This is a 57% increase in high-power charging locations compared to the same time last year. Many of these locations have multiple charging bays in place to support multiple cars charging simultaneously.
National EV Charging Network
As part of the Driving the Nation Fund, the Australian Government is partnering with NRMA to deliver a ‘backbone’ national EV charging network. The Fund will provide $39.3 million to the NRMA, which they will match and build 117 fast EV chargers on key highway routes across Australia at an average interval of 150 kms, connecting all capital cities.
The project will raise current and future EV driver confidence by establishing a nation-wide network of chargers. The fast chargers will be compatible with all EVs and accessible by all motorists.
Design and Location
While the service station has been around since 1905, it has not really changed all that much. Storage tanks, petrol bowsers under a canopy and a point of sale, which will include other items for sale, such as food and snacks.
The rapid transition to electric vehicles is presenting designers with an exciting opportunity to rethink the service station. The design of charging stations will be interesting to observe as they evolve over time. The behaviour of EV drivers is still unknown, so we don’t know, to any great certainty, what to expect from them. Charging stations will evolve with the needs and expectations of drivers.
Needs and Expectations
In and around town, the majority of EV charging/top-up will be done:
- at home;
- while shopping; and
- during working hours while the car is parked at work.
Out on the open road, where drivers are travelling hours on end, charging EVs between 30-60 minutes will be common (subject to charger availability).
This will enable drivers to:
- freshen up and stretch their legs;
- have a meal/coffee/drink; and
- do a bit of work, review their email and social media.
The charging stations will need to provide facilities that cater for these needs.
On-site Energy Sources
Maximum environmental benefit of owning an EV is derived when the vehicle is charged with renewable energy and not just plugged into the grid, which is mostly powered by coal. Therefore, the location of the charging stations will be important to ensure access to renewable energy generation. The charging station may be accompanied by solar/wind assets and batteries to generate and store renewable energy to be used in charging vehicles.
About Us
We will continue to explore charging infrastructure issues and challenges over coming weeks and months.
The NetZero Roundtable will be sharing sustainability insights and practical experiences, encouraging replicability of successful initiatives to move Australian councils closer to their emission reduction targets.
In a country as broad and diverse as Australia, this will be an opportunity for local government sustainability practitioners, policy makers and executives to come together and share their approaches to progressing their NetZero initiatives.
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