The Byron Shire Council has installed regional New South Wales’ first ‘technology agnostic’ electric vehicle fast charger, tapping home grown technology from Brisbane-based company Tritium for the job.
The 50kW DC Veefil EV fast charger, installed by the Council at the Byron Bay Library car park, is being offered by as a free service to all makes of electric car, with the ability to add 50km range in just 10 minutes, or a full charge in around half an hour.
The power supplied by the charger will be 100 per cent renewable energy from local retailer Enova Energy.
Speaking at the launch of the charging station on the weekend – which was attended by One Step founder Giles Parkinson – Byron Shire mayor Simon Richardson said he
hoped the Veefil would help overcome a key barrier to EV uptake in Australia – range anxiety.
“Having a fast charging station in Byron Bay and hopefully in the other major towns, will help allay those fears and enable people to seriously consider this zero emissions transport option,” Richardson said.
“Plus, it will provide a central location at the Byron Bay Library for Council’s electric vehicle to charge up and get back out on the road. A quick charge station will also allow us to add electric vehicles to the Council fleet.”
The Byron Bay installation is just the 10th in Australia for Tritium, although the company’s award-winning technology has been a huge export success, with Veefil units being installed on major charging networks and fast-charging highways in 18 different countries.
In 2015, the company secured a deal to supply New Zealand with 23 Veefil units as a first instalment of a three-year project to establish a network of fast chargers across the country.
The technology is also being supplied to California-based ChargePoint, as part of a huge deal that will see the award-winning Veefil fast charging stations installed throughout the US, including the express charging corridors on both the east and west coasts.
Indeed, the scale of international demand last year forced Tritium to move to a larger, more high-tech production facility in Brisbane, where it has tripled its manufacturing capability.
“We’re very pleased to see the Byron Shire Council supporting the uptake of electric vehicles with this installation of Tritium’s Veefil EV fast charger,” said Tritium sales manager Marcelo Salgado.
“As the first local council in Australia to install one of our chargers, we commend Byron Shire’s progressive approach to e-mobility and sustainable transport.”
Sophie is editor of One Step Off The Grid and editor of its sister site, Renew Economy. Sophie has been writing about clean energy for more than a decade.
