About $70 million funding will come from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) under the Driving the Nation Program aimed at fostering innovation in EV charging solutions across Australia.
A total funding package of $146.1 million will be delivered by ARENA over five years from 2023-24 to co-fund projects to decarbonise road transport.
Under the $70m funding pool now available, ARENA aims to support EV uptake through innovation in public charging and innovation in the management of charging.
Through these new focus areas, ARENA will be seeking to support innovation in technology and business case development in charging, as well as inform regulatory change and standards.
This funding will build on ARENA’s previous support for EV charging highway networks, smart charging and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) charging projects, as well as programs for fleets, heavy and long distance vehicles and to incentivise household smart charging.
ARENA will consolidate its EV charging portfolio under Driving the Nation, including unlocking the network coverage and scale, easy customer access and use, and improving grid integration and capacity.
Since 2015, ARENA has announced more than $140m in funding to projects that decarbonise the transport sector, including fast charging stations, hydrogen refuelling and household smart charging.
Driving the Nation will build upon ARENA’s previous support for EV charging across Australia, says ARENA acting chief executive Chris Faris.
“With light vehicles accounting for around 11% of Australian greenhouse emissions, it is vital that we continue to fast track the transition to electric vehicles over the next decade.
“As more EVs become available to Australians and their costs decline, it’s important that the availability of high-quality charging infrastructure keeps pace with the take-up of EVs.”
