"Double the number of petrol pumps:" NSW promises 30,000 EV charging stations

The NSW Coalition government has announced plans to install more than 30,000 electric vehicle charging stations across the state by 2026, if it is re-elected at next month's election.

There are currently about 1,000 public chargers in NSW, so the addition of 30,000 more by 2026 would be game-changer for EV owners, many of whom have been frustrated with the access and reliability issues plaguing Australia's public charging network.

The government says that 30,000 EV chargers would be more than double the number of existing petrol pumps in NSW.

The announcement on Sunday – jointly made by NSW Treasurer Matt Kean, Minister for Fair Trading Victor Dominello, Minister for Planning and Homes Anthony Roberts, and Minister for Transport and Veterans and Western Sydney David Elliott, includes three areas of reform:

A common frustration with EV owning renters is the inability to charge in apartment carparks.

The NSW government says if re-elected it will work on developing a "Right to Charge" strata reform, meaning where apartment renters are willing to pay the cost and comply with strict safety requirements, their requests to install EV chargers cannot be unreasonably refused.

Minister for Fair Trading Victor Dominello said: "These reforms will make it as easy as possible for people living in one of the 84,000 apartment buildings in NSW to install a charger, without passing on unfair costs to other residents,"

The resident would still have to cover the entire cost of the charger and installation which can be very expensive when new electrical wiring needs to be installed. The landlord then essentially gets the charger as an additional selling point for the property.

A potential way to increase uptake further could be to mandate a landlord copayment to cover a percentage of the cost. This would make sense as the landlord is the ultimate beneficiary because the charging station increases the value of property.

A landloard copayment may also incentivise apartment building owners to get together and install all charging stations in the car park in one go. This would dramatically reduce installation costs compared to doing each one separately.

The NSW government said it would also streamline planning laws to make it easier to install EV charging stations in public places like on power poles and parking meters.

Minister for Planning and Homes Anthony Roberts said "We know that 30 per cent of drivers can't access off-street parking and will rely on public chargers, which is why we are cutting red tape to roll them out even faster,"

The third part of the announcement is that the NSW government will roll out EV chargers in transport hubs across train, bus and ferry networks.

Minister for Transport, Veterans and Western Sydney David Elliott said "Commuter carparks are a great option for EV drivers to recharge while at work, making sure they can hit the road fully charged by the end of the day,"

Sites announced for the first stage of the transport hub EV chargers:

As part of the plan, EV charging company Jolt will build a network of free and fast EV charging stations across at key transit hubs in the Greater Sydney Area.

In a statement Jolt said that more than 50 initial EV charging stations will be installed at train and metro stations as well as bus stops, starting mid 2023, with the number expanding to more than 200 chargers over the next decade throughout the partnership.

The Jolt network will include 7kWh of free charging (around 20 mins of charging time) every 24 hours. Jolt says that drivers can save over $1,100 per year using their network.

Treasurer Matt Kean said with more than one million EVs expected to hit NSW roads by 2030, the Government is already investing $209 million to ensure a comprehensive world-class charging network across NSW.

It also has removed stamp duty on EVs under $78,000, offered $3,000 rebates for EVs under $68,750, allowed EVs in transit lanes and plans to transition the State's entire 8,000 plus bus fleet to zero emissions

As of the end of January, a total of 4,495 of the $3000 EV rebates have been paid out – almost 20% of the 25,000 rebates available for new eligible EVs purchases with a dutiable value up to $68,750.

Daniel Bleakley is a clean technology researcher and advocate with a background in engineering and business. He has a strong interest in electric vehicles, renewable energy, manufacturing and public policy.