The devil will be in the detail; if this refers to support for AMS then I'm okay with that, if it's to NRMA individually I'm less in agreement but am not going to argue against it.
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NRMA fast charging network
- Thread starter baillies
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- Australia New Zealand
Only for the important things. They have a call centre ! Maybe you can call the expert each time you need to charge to check if it's working?
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Chuq
Active Member
I remember this announcement was an election promise before they became the government (ARENA/NRMA national fast charging network)... not sure if that bypasses any tender requirement, etc? I wouldn't have expected so but who knows.
WoodWombat
Member
To add to your note, AMS already had a controlling interest in ChargeFox before the finished buying 100%.
If you have no morals then Hydrogen looks to be a great boondoggle. Make extraordinary claims, get money thrown at you and never actually have to deliver anything that works in any way shape or form.
WoodWombat
Member
The thing that you have to ask yourself is why does the NRMA feel the need to create their own network when they already own a share of Chargefox? How dysfunctional must that relationship be for it to have been better for NRMA to set up and run a vary large network with no payment than to just work with Chargefox to do this?
The only clue that I have to this comes from the Driven podcast from earlier in the year where it was implied that Chargefox don't want to build a DC charging network at all, preferring to become a charging and management provider instead. This lead NRMA to do what they did with Ampol back in the early days of motoring and set up a network to enable their members to head boldly into the countryside.
Chuq
Active Member
The NRMA/AMS/Chargefox relationship needs a complicated diagram to explain. Even more confusing since NRMA and Chargefox both have separate ownership stakes in Electric Highway Tasmania (although less than 50% combined, I think)
Even if Chargefox don't want to own first-party sites, if NRMA owns a charging network and through AMS / Chargefox is selling charging management / billing services to charging networks, they should at least be prepared to eat their own dogfood!
WoodWombat
Member
Exactly! If NRMA will not use Chargefox for billing and their app, then why would anyone else. It sends a very poor message about the future of the Chargefox network.
Has Chargefox actually delivered a single fast charging site since they finished the first stage of their network in 2020? I can't think of any.
Chargefox's only won a small amount in the mid-2021 Arena funding round - and only for SA and WA
arena.gov.au
I don't think any of those stations have popped up yet (and we also haven't seen anything from Engie) but they will also be doing the billing/rollout for the SA Govt / RAA
www.chargefox.com
Jetcharge is doing the rollout of the WA network, and Chargefox does billing for the existing RACWA network, so not sure of involvement there.
Finally their billed network is expanding with Qld Yurika, Gold Coast and NSW UWS networks.
Chargefox Future Fuels Public Fast Charging
The Chargefox Future Fuels Public Fast Charging project will deliver 16 fast charging stations across Adelaide and Perth.
arena.gov.au
I don't think any of those stations have popped up yet (and we also haven't seen anything from Engie) but they will also be doing the billing/rollout for the SA Govt / RAA
Chargefox partners with RAA to add over 530 EV charging plugs to the South Australian charging network | Chargefox
In partnership with RAA and funded by the South Australian government, we'll be adding 536 charging points at 140 locations throughout the state.
www.chargefox.com
Jetcharge is doing the rollout of the WA network, and Chargefox does billing for the existing RACWA network, so not sure of involvement there.
Finally their billed network is expanding with Qld Yurika, Gold Coast and NSW UWS networks.
Chuq
Active Member
Plus 15-20 sites for Electric Highway Tasmania (5 ARENA Hobart locations and 10-15 regional state government ChargeSmart locations).Chargefox's only won a small amount in the mid-2021 Arena funding round - and only for SA and WA
Chargefox Future Fuels Public Fast Charging
The Chargefox Future Fuels Public Fast Charging project will deliver 16 fast charging stations across Adelaide and Perth.
I don't think any of those stations have popped up yet (and we also haven't seen anything from Engie) but they will also be doing the billing/rollout for the SA Govt / RAA
Chargefox partners with RAA to add over 530 EV charging plugs to the South Australian charging network | Chargefox
In partnership with RAA and funded by the South Australian government, we'll be adding 536 charging points at 140 locations throughout the state.
Jetcharge is doing the rollout of the WA network, and Chargefox does billing for the existing RACWA network, so not sure of involvement there.
Finally their billed network is expanding with Qld Yurika, Gold Coast and NSW UWS networks.
Maximillan
Member
Update on Wollongong from the NRMA EV Community forums. Was added to Plugshare.
Maximillan
Member
This is a problem at Bega. There is a woman with Model3P who charges there "why pay?" "Do you have solar at home? "Yes, but this is free ..."
NRMA needs to be charging => 50c/ kWh for members, and double for non- members, imho (I'm a member!). It would still be cheaper than SC, but would stop it being abused by tight-arses.
Hey! I resemble that comment. And don't kid yourself, at least two of us charged there when they left it switched on. The real question is why is it switched off? More dodgy Tritium gear?"an eager EV owner" - is the NRMA throwing shade at one of us?!
And yes. It really, really shouldn't be free to use. I pay the going price just about everywhere. Heck, I just charged at Kirrawee, 7% to 94%, at 67c/kWh. It's worth it, and it's exactly enough time to visit Aldi and Coles, which I had to do anyway.
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At a minimum they just need to be on an app - even if free. And I'm sure Chargefox could add them in a week.
To avoid freeloaders I'd say 20c/kWh is enough.
For those with solar it's the opportunity cost of feeding back to the grid (typically 4-10c these days)
And for those using the grid it's probably 20-40c depending on time of day and plan.
I'd also be inclined to price on usage.
Olympic Park, Wallsend, Mittagong, Picton (and Wollongong) at a higher rate say 40c/kWh
Yes I wish all operators started charging even if it was just a token fee equivalent to a standard consumer tariff. At most places free chargers may not be necessary to attract patronage any longer and may actually be working against them.
There was a queue at a local shopping centre for the free Tesla AC chargers the other day causing a traffic headache. Why queue for AC charging in a suburban shopping centre? Really that hard up after buying a $60k+ car?
Surely can't be worth it for a few percent added to a battery. There's cheap and then there's cheaper!
As power prices increase the fear is it will get even worse and NRMA charger queues will increase to the point that they will be generating negative press for themselves and EV drivers.
They need to hurry and fix their app and get things right. Rant over....
There was a queue at a local shopping centre for the free Tesla AC chargers the other day causing a traffic headache. Why queue for AC charging in a suburban shopping centre? Really that hard up after buying a $60k+ car?
Surely can't be worth it for a few percent added to a battery. There's cheap and then there's cheaper!
As power prices increase the fear is it will get even worse and NRMA charger queues will increase to the point that they will be generating negative press for themselves and EV drivers.
They need to hurry and fix their app and get things right. Rant over....
If you don't have charging at home, then yes, it is worth it. Agree that they should charge at the standard tariff. Problem has been that until recently, Tesla destination chargers didn't support billing. The NSW Electric vehicle destination charging grants will probably result in a lot of billed AC charging being installed in a short period of time.
As for what NRMA should charge, 50 kW chargefox sites are already 32 c/kWh at 20% off for NRMA members, 50 c is too much.
