The Gold Coast City Council has announced a plan to install 10 EV charging locations, with the first charger installed at Broadbeach today.
Each location will use Aussie-built Tritium chargers. The RTM75 EV 75KW charging stations were recently announced by the company and this is the first installation of the scalable technology.
The plan is that chargers will be rolled out across locations in Broadbeach, Coolangatta, Southport, Pimpama, Carrara, Bundall and Nerang.
Fast facts:
- The Gold Coast is the first location worldwide to launch Tritium’s new RTM75 technology.
- The 75kW DC fast charger is 50 per cent faster than 50kW chargers and can charge two vehicles simultaneously.
- 10 stations will be installed across the city, from Pimpama to Coolangatta.
- In 2019 electric vehicle sales increased by 200 per cent in Australia.
- Power to charge EVs at stations is offset by the City’s Virtual Power Plant.
The 75kW DC fast charger is 50% faster than 50kW chargers and can charge two vehicles simultaneously, delivering 75km of range to an EV within 10 minutes of charging.
Mayor Tom Tate said the advanced RTM75 technology would showcase our city as an innovative destination, committed to a greener future. The 75kw system can be scaled up to 150kW as more users choose EV transport.
“As the transition to electric vehicles begins to pick up pace, we have secured the most advanced DC fast chargers on the market.
The power used to charge vehicles at these stations will be offset by power generated by the City’s Virtual Power Plant, which harnesses solar energy from more than 47 City buildings.”
Mayor Tom Tate
The 10 charging stations will be installed within a 50km radius of each other, to provide electric vehicle drivers with necessary infrastructure as well as catering to anticipated demand.
Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning Steven Miles said the Queensland Government had provided $350,000 towards the charging stations, to provide a boost to the local economy during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are supporting more jobs in more industries and it’s good to see the installation of the charging station will support around 14 jobs across the Coast.
These new charging stations also complement the Palaszczuk Government’s Electric Super Highway and provide further reassurance for EV drivers.
Having charging stations along the Gold Coast not only incentivises future EV users, but it also encourages driving tourism along a beautiful stretch of the Coast.”
Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning Steven Miles
This COVID Works for Queensland project is a joint initiative of City of Gold Coast and the Queensland Government.
While these chargers aren’t the 350kW ultra-fast chargers we see in other locations, it is great to see fast chargers being supported by the council. Residents and tourists will now be able to charge their electric vehicles as they live, work and holiday around the Gold Coast.
Hopefully during 2021 we see many other examples of councils supporting electric vehicle infrastructure with investments like this.
From the supplied photo of Mayor Tom Tate, we can see a number clearly labelled EV charging bays. This should help normalise charging locations and strongly indicate to the anyone driving an ICE vehicle that you need to find an alternate park. This has been a problem elsewhere and we hope they police this, to ensure EV owners have the ability to take advantage of the new chargers.
Charging sessions will likely be charged, with revenue returned to the Council. We don’t currently know the rate to be charged, but typically DC fast charging costs somewhere between 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of refueling a combustion vehicle.
Update
Charging sessions are now happening from the public.
