ARENA Future Fuels Fund - fast chargers

[Chuq]

Looks like some more fast charging stations coming to the cities!

Future Fuels Fund - Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)

The first Round of the Future Fuels Fund will see $16.5m made available to fund battery electric vehicle (BEV) public fast charging infrastructure in capital cities and regional centres.
ARENA defines a fast charging station as a publicly accessible location able to charge a BEV at 50kW or above. A full list of the eligible Geographic Zones, minimum installation requirements and funding available, is included in the Future Fuels Fund Round 1 Guidelines.

The full PDF is here: https://arena.gov.au/assets/2020/04/future-fuels-fund-round-1-ev-guidelines.pdf

But quick summary of funding available:

The document also says stations should be able to charge two vehicles simultaneously at 50 kW or faster. Depending on how you read this it could mean both at 50 kW at the same time, or capable of 50 kW but not necessarily both at once.

Organisations will be able to select and apply for specific geographic regions individually.

interesting that it's a city focus, but ARENA has previously funded the Chargefox and Evie ultra-rapid networks for long distance trips so I guess it's to complement that.

 

[begg]

It makes sense to put some more in Sydney. Big gap between Sydney's two superchargers and the NRMA one at Lithgow if you disregard the destination chargers.

 

[Blue heaven]

No funding allocated to the Canning stock route? Clearly those responsible for picking sites need to do some basic research and scroll the Murdoch media comments section.

 

[cafz]

It makes sense to put some more in Sydney. Big gap between Sydney's two superchargers and the NRMA one at Lithgow if you disregard the destination chargers.

There's a 50kW site near Penrith: PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You

 

[begg]

Gee, thanks cafz, I must have "painted on eyes". Didn't see that one. I had a moment on a drive recently where the Tesla navigation picked up an NRMA charger. I thought that's handy, but never seen it happen since.
I'll use the plugshare app a bit better in future.

 

[moa999]

Unfortunately money doesn't necessarily help with sites.

Evie had a DA in for Heathcote in Sydney's south almost 12 months ago but got pulled after they couldn't get enough power.
Power shortage sinks EV charging station plan

 

[cafz]

No funding allocated to the Canning stock route? Clearly those responsible for picking sites need to do some basic research and scroll the Murdoch media comments section.

Mate, if I can't drive three times around Australia without stopping, peeing into a bottle and towing a caravan full of house bricks, I'm just not interested.

 

[PC__LoadLetter]

It makes sense to put some more in Sydney. Big gap between Sydney's two superchargers and the NRMA one at Lithgow if you disregard the destination chargers.

The word Sydney appears in the first column. Not as somewhere they'd go, but as an overarching region. They're only proposing installing chargers at 2 out of the 3 zones in the last column: Wollongong, Central Coast or Newcastle.

Though I could be mistaken - it could be all 3.

If it's only 2 out of 3, I really hope they don't waste their time in Newcastle. If council there can't de-ICE the existing DC chargers, why bother installing new ones? The Mental Coast desperately needs any DC charging at all, to allow shorter-range non-Tesla EVs to leave Sydney heading north. And Wollongong is in a sad state with Fairy Meadow being incompatible with most EVs (CCS1), and with Shell Cove being consistently faulty.

Besides, Sydney to Lithgow is fairly easy. You've got 2x350kW chargers at Seven Hills (end of the M2 - Abbott Road Caltex) and 1x50kW charger at Caddens Corner (a flashy new mini-mall near Kingswood/Penrith). Both Evie Networks. They're both fairly new, they only opened a couple of months ago.

It's unfortunate that Tesla's in-car nav won't show third-party chargers properly, though it's fair enough since they don't have integrated billing and availability data. As an EV owner you kinda need to know everything, or be able to check everything, if you're planning trips longer than your overnight at-home charge can get you. Kinda like knowing where to find petrol if you're driving someplace silly, like the Canning Stock Route ;-)

 

[cafz]

It's unfortunate that Tesla's in-car nav won't show third-party chargers properly, though it's fair enough since they don't have integrated billing and availability data.

Interestingly, Google Maps seems to have real-time availability data for those two Evie sites.

 

[moa999]

It's unfortunate that Tesla's in-car nav won't show third-party chargers properly, though it's fair enough since they don't have integrated billing and availability data.

They now show many third-party CCS2 chargers in Europe so it's just a matter of Tesla getting a data feed from Chargefox and Evie primarily.

 

[Chuq]

A bit more detail about this one:

To clarify, examples of eligible Fast Charging Station configurations may include but are not limited to:
> 1 x 100 kW dual-port charger.
> 2 x 50 kW single-port charger.
> 2 x 50 kW dual-port chargers.

So for example the recent Tritium RTM75 would not meet the criteria (unless there were two of them of course!)

 

[Chuq]

I thought we would have heard about this one by now.. must be close!

Future Fuels Fund (Round 1)

The Future Fuels Fund aims to reduce transport sector barriers to businesses and fleets to choose new vehicle technologies.

arena.gov.au

• Offer to Negotiate or Full Application Outcome: ARENA aims to issue outcome letters before 30 May, 2021. ARENA expects to finalise negotiation of Funding Agreements for successful Applicants by 30 June, 2021.

 

[Anubis]

I thought we would have heard about this one by now.. must be close!

The Australian government were probably disappointed no companies submitted a serious Hydrogen proposal and are confused what to do next.

 

[BCTS]

The Australian government were probably disappointed no companies submitted a serious Hydrogen proposal and are confused what to do next.

I submitted my portable Nuclear Reactor Plans on a napkin with a Lipstick Kiss directly to Barnaby Joyce last week... expecting the $$$$ in the Account tomorrow.

 

[Chuq]

Future Fuels Fund revved up to provide EV charging nationally

ARENA today announced $24.55 million in funding to five applicants across 19 projects to expand Australia’s fast charging network EVs.

arena.gov.au

On behalf of the Australian Government, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has today announced $24.55 million in funding to five applicants across 19 projects to expand Australia’s fast charging network for battery electric vehicles (EVs), in Round 1 of the Government’s Future Fuels Fund.

The expanded funding pool, increased by $8.05 million from an initial allocation of $16.5 million, was made available after ARENA was impressed by the strength and number of applicants to the funding round.

The successful applicants are:

• Evie Networks: ARENA will provide $8.85 million to Fast Cities Australia Pty Ltd (Evie Networks) for the delivery of 158 public fast charging stations across eight regions.
• Ampol: ARENA will provide $7.05 million to Ampol Australia Petroleum Pty Ltd (Ampol) for the delivery of 121 public fast charging stations across four regions.
• Engie: ARENA will provide $6.85 million to IPAH Client Solutions Australia Pty Ltd (Engie) for the delivery of 103 public fast charging stations across four regions.
• Chargefox: ARENA will provide $1.4 million to Chargefox Pty Ltd (Chargefox) for the delivery of 16 public fast charging stations across two regions.
• Electric Highways Tasmania: ARENA will provide $0.4 million to Electric Highways Tasmania Pty Ltd (EHT) for the delivery of 5 public fast charging stations across one region.

Together, the five applicants will deliver 403 new fast charging stations, each capable of charging at least two vehicles concurrently at 50 kW or above. Catalysing a total investment value of $79.9 million, Round 1 will see a seven-fold increase in the number of fast charging stations in Australia’s most populated cities and regions.

Over 400 new stations. Holy crap!

 

[Anubis]

Very nice and certainly is welcome.
First run through the announcement it looks like NRMA and Tesla don't have anything.
The maps also don't have anything in country/outback areas. Targetting populated areas in round 1.
Hopefully round 2+ will expand to the country areas.

 

[scully]

Tesla wouldn’t be eligible until they open up. Surprising about NRMA. Ampol seems to be the big new player. That could be good, as they already have the sites

 

[cafz]

Surprising about NRMA.

Not really, since they're focused on country areas and this round was for the cities.

I guess the aim of blanketing the cities with 50kW+ chargers is to provide charging options for those in apartments or without off-street parking?

 

[moa999]

Tesla wouldn’t be eligible until they open up. Surprising about NRMA. Ampol seems to be the big new player. That could be good, as they already have the sites

Ampol already have existing sites with Evie, so it's possibly just they split apps.

Engie seems to be the new player.

 

[scully]

Not really, since they're focused on country areas and this round was for the cities.

I guess the aim of blanketing the cities with 50kW+ chargers is to provide charging options for those in apartments or without off-street parking?

There are gaps in the targeted areas for NRMA like Central Coast. NRMA run all the caravan parks there. You would think they would have gone for a few at least.