BP Pulse Network

[Sir Surfalot]

It just occurred to me what a good location another (coming soon, co-funded in the last round of NSW fast charging grants) BP Pulse station is for traffic doing the M7-M2 route into (or out of) Sydney, which is the BP on Seven Hills Rd at Baulkham Hills. The funding document says “This site will have one 360kW charging unit to service two bays and one 150kW charging unit to service two bays.”. Appears that it would be a better choice than the Eastern Creek one, unless you were actually going to be heading west right afterwards, out towards Penrith.

So, if travelling from south of Sydney to north of Sydney (ie Hume Highway to M7 then M2 then NorthConnex to the M1 motorway) rather than going to this Eastern Creek BP Pulse station and doubling your M7 tolls as a result (ie adding about $8 to the cost of your charging stop), if you leave the M7 just before the M2 starts (Bella Vista, Norwest Business Park exit), go east along Seven Hills Rd to that BP, then after charging continue along east Seven Hills Rd, turn onto Windsor Rd then enter the M2 from there, it’s not added much distance to the trip (and maybe 5-10 minutes in time vs not exiting the motorways at all) avoided the toll double-up and accesses what should be 360kW and 150kW chargers there with 4 bays between them. Works just as well in the other direction too as far as I can see.

i reckon I would be using that one once it is open - rather than the existing Evie 350kW chargers at Seven Hills (near M2/M7 junction) - if I don’t have enough charge otherwise. I don’t know what its power supply situation is, ie hopefully it isn’t dripped to 40kW as these other ones are, but the government grants specify the power levels this site is supposed to be delivering, so fingers crossed it can do so, and do so reliably!

 

[scully]

Penriff BP Pulse (coming soon) | PlugShare

 

[RareEarth]

BP Pulse should get this fixed before turning them on. This has electrify America written all over it.

BP made $5 billion profit last quarter...

 

[PC__LoadLetter]

More BP Pulse fails. This is turning into a disaster they aren't commissioning the chargers properly

BP Pulse at Balgowlah is the same - limited to 40kW (so I saw 36-37ish). And that's arriving on 20%.

And the only reason i had 20% was an emergency charge at Mona Vale, when uber riders up the top of the peninsula unknowingly refused to give me a decent run south last night. I kept getting stuck doing local Newport-Barrenjoey runs. I should have just taken a(nother) power nap at Mona Vale. Its 21kW isn't much slower, it's cheaper, and I was already there.

BP Marulan Southbound, on the other hand, is glorious. Couldn't get closer to the freeway if they tried, great speeds, and I rather like their counter meals. Just needs more stalls.

 

[cafz]

i reckon I would be using that one once it is open - rather than the existing Evie 350kW chargers at Seven Hills (near M2/M7 junction) - if I don’t have enough charge otherwise.

What's the advantage over Evie Seven Hills? The westward link to the M7 is much the same - both via Norwest Bvd - but the eastward link to the M2 is much shorter for the Evie site.

 

[Sir Surfalot]

What's the advantage over Evie Seven Hills?

Compared with those Evie chargers I don’t think the chargers at BP Baulkham Hills will be as busy, carpark less hectic, a bit cheaper, still not going much in the wrong direction to get to/from the charger. Mainly it has advantages over the BP Pulse at Eastern Creek for a lot of drivers when heading past Sydney via the motorways (ie comparing one BP Pulse site with another).

I do like the Evie charger at Seven Hills (I charge there now sometimes), but with only two bays I have been caught there a couple of times with vehicles already charging. I reckon this BP one at Baulkham Hills will be un-obvious enough to be a good stop on a past-Sydney trip where you can’t make it to the next Supercharger or to home. I’m really not keen on the Eastern Creek one for myself, mainly because of how the tolls work, but also they HAVE to solve the 40kW peak charging issue quickly. The Ampol chargers only giving Teslas 75kW or so peak for $0.60/kWh is bad enough but if this 40kW issue becomes - and remains - widespread on the BP Pulse chargers then that will be two potentially important charging chains giving a pretty bad initial impression, which doesn’t help any of us.

 

[scully]

Didn't the bp guy say they were just going to stick as many in as possible quickly, and go back later and upgrade power at the sites?

 

[Sir Surfalot]

Didn't the bp guy say they were just going to stick as many in as possible quickly, and go back later and upgrade power at the sites?

Yes but I don’t think 40kW peak was in the conversation. Best quote I can find quickly now from the drive.com.au story on BP Pulse is “The plugs will initially be capable of supplying energy at up to 75kW – though BP claims next year "new and existing chargers will be connected to high power grid connections" to boost the peak charging power to 150kW.
The initial 75kW chargers are priced at $0.55 per kilowatt-hour (kWh)”.

IMHO $0.55/kWh for 75kW peak is (just) ok, especially with that wording implying they will ramp the price from there when they go full beans to 150kW peak, but for just 40kW peak i think it’s a big ask. I reckon an introductory (40kW) charging rate should have an introductory price…

 

[BreatheSafe]

I reckon an introductory (40kW) charging rate should have an introductory price…

Yep got to agree with all of that. The poor consumer that doesn't have anything idea of charging curves or what their shiny new EV is capable of will probably just shrug it off without knowing that they are being short changed.
I do also wonder whether the government will be upto task and police any of this as time ticks on.
I am afraid that it is all just politics, just numbers of chargers rolled out for the optics.

 

[BreatheSafe]

Come to think of it, the chargers are probably capable of the 75kW for 800v capable EV's which is the 40kW for Tesla @ 400v....?
Would need to check plugshare to confirm.

They could be pulling the same trick as Ampol, when they 'upgrade' to the full 150kW it will be for 800v architecture.

 

[scully]

Can someone just pop around in their Taycan Turbo S and check them out? cheers

 

[cafz]

Come to think of it, the chargers are probably capable of the 75kW for 800v capable EV's which is the 40kW for Tesla @ 400v....?

Not these chargers - BP was purchasing either RTM75s with 50kW of modules installed or PKM150s, neither of which are current-limited (even with the lowest-spec CCS cable option they are capable of 75kW on a 400V car).

 

[scully]

Ballina coming soon

 

[RichardV]

Ballina coming soon

But Campbelltown has fallen off the map.

 

[ARMARM]

But Campbelltown has fallen off the map.

I'm going to drive past there this morning and have a little look.

 

[ARMARM]

I'm going to drive past there this morning and have a little look.

 

[raffdog]

BP made $5 billion profit last quarter...

Exactly they actually don't care if they work or not. It's all about them appearing to care about the change to electric vehicle charging.

 

[ARMARM]

Revesby, NSW is now live

 

[moa999]

And back to CCS2/CHAdeMO, and a free period.
(Thought they might have gone dual CCS2 on this given how close Wiley Park is)

 

[moa999]

And Asquith, NSW also showing as a grey dot in the app map.
Dual CCS2 (in an area lacking CHAdeMO)