The NSW Government Wants to Roll Out a Bunch of EV Chargers in Wine Country

The NSW Government Wants to Roll Out a Bunch of EV Chargers in Wine Country

Gosh, electric car chargers have been in the news a bit recently, haven’t they?

The NSW government has announced a plan to roll out 3,500 EV chargers across regional tourism locations in the state, such as at wineries, cafes, motels, natural attractions, zoos and museums.

The news comes just a week after Labor announced a huge push for a nationwide EV network rollout, with a charging station built every 150 kilometres across major highways.

That news, mind you, came three months after the NSW government announced its own gigantic push for electric vehicle charging stations, with ultra-fast chargers planned to be built across Sydney, located no more than five minutes away from a commuter.

Well, today, by way of supporting state tourism, the NSW government has another plan: supercharged tourism through EV charging stations.

“EVs are growing in popularity and this will help ensure our regional areas have the charging stations needed to welcome EV-driving visitors,” says NSW Treasurer and Minister for Energy Matt Kean.

The idea behind this electric car charging station push is simple to understand: it’s a push for regional tourism from electric vehicle-driving folk, even though electric cars only make up about a 2 per cent market share of new vehicles in Australia.

In a way, it’s supposed to preempt the EV boom for regional tourist attractions, with chargers readily available for electric cars. It’s supposed to cut down on range anxiety by giving electric car owners assurance that they can get a charge at the winery they’re visiting. EV tourist drives will also be developed across the state.

Grants will be issued to regional businesses of between $2,000 and $40,000. This money is a part of the earlier mentioned push for charging stations in NSW (tallying up to $171 million in total).

These grants will be issued through a co-funding arrangement, where the government handles a bit of the money (75 per cent of the cost of chargers, 75 per cent of the cost of installation and 50 per cent of the cost of a two-year charging software subscription).

The chargers that the state government says it will fund will be able to achieve a top-up of up to 130 kilometres range in about an hour.

“This will grow local economies and support small businesses in areas impacted by COVID, bushfires and floods,” added the NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway.

I’m looking forward to being able to go to a banger cafe or winery somewhere in regional NSW and see an EV charger readily available, provided some petrol-chugging car isn’t parked in the charging spot.

If you’re unsure where you can find electric vehicle chargers, here’s a guide for that.


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