Electric vehicle drivers will get a boost from another 117 fast-charging locations along major Australian highways over the next two years in a $78.6 million deal designed to address "known black spots".
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The federal government and NRMA confirmed their deal and named 131 potential regional locations for the charging infrastructure on Wednesday, seven months after flagging the investment in the federal budget.
The announcement comes one week after the government launched its National Electric Vehicle Strategy and follows record electric vehicle sales this year.
Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the government's $39.3 million stake in the charging rollout was designed to encourage more Australians to adopt zero-emission cars and eliminate range anxiety.
"This project will help close the gaps and known black spots in the network and make it possible to drive from Darwin to Perth, Broken Hill to Adelaide, and from Brisbane to Tennant Creek in the NT," Mr Bowen said.
"EVs aren't just for the cities and Australians who drive long distances either for work or for holidays should be able to reap the benefits of cars that are cheaper and cleaner to run."
The project will see 117 electric vehicle fast-chargers installed along national highways and in rural and regional areas.
NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury told AAP the company had identified 131 towns as possible locations for the charging stations to create an electric car-charging backbone for the country.
"Our rule is to aim for a cluster of chargers every 150 kilometres and then we need to be flexible as well," he said.
"At Christmas, we found demand spiked in certain locations and we need to have the flexibility to accommodate this."
The selected locations include 32 Queensland towns, 29 in Western Australia, 26 in NSW, 19 in South Australia, 15 in the Northern Territory, seven in Victoria, two in Tasmania and one in the ACT.
While federal funding had been allocated over five years, Mr Khoury said NRMA would aim to install vehicle chargers over the next two years and would work with local councils and businesses to identify the most appropriate locations.
The motoring body could face challenges though, he warned, in some of Australia's more remote towns that had limited electricity infrastructure.
Australia's electric vehicle charging network has grown significantly over the past three years, with the number of chargers almost doubling, according to the Electric Vehicle Council.
Providers installed another 1530 public car chargers in 2022, the Council found, in 778 locations.
The new funding announcement comes a week after the federal government released its National Electric Vehicle Strategy that detailed plans to encourage the adoption of zero-emission vehicles.
It included $70 million in grants for innovative and regional electric vehicle charging projects to be administered by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.
Australian Associated Press
