Power poles turned into electric vehicle chargers in 12-month trial

The 12-month Intellihub trial has seen 22 kilowatt chargers installed on power poles at Cardiff, Redhead, Dudley, Charlestown and Morisset.

Lake Macquarie is one of eight councils taking part in the trial.

The number of electric vehicles registered across Lake Macquarie has skyrocketed by more than 140 per cent over the past 12 months, mayor Kay Fraser said.

"There are more than 800 electric vehicles registered across our council area, and that number continues to grow each month," she said.

"Accessible public charging infrastructure is central to supporting our residents already driving electric vehicles and for those people contemplating buying one for their next car purchase.

"The new chargers are displayed on all public EV charging maps, so every driver will know they can charge their EV in Lake Mac while they explore our region."

The chargers are part of the EV Streetside Charging project, led by consumer energy and smart metering specialists Intellihub, supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency and the council.

Each station is connected to the overhead electricity supply, with energy use matched with 100 per cent accredited GreenPower.

Member for Shortland Pat Conroy joined Cr Fraser on Monday to officially power up one of the chargers at Redhead, along with local EV motorist Leah Stevens who got a quick top-up charge.

Ms Stevens said the EV chargers would be a great asset for the community.

"I do a lot of my charging at home, but I also need different types of public chargers when I'm not at home and might be running low," she said.

"Putting chargers in popular public areas makes it easy to get a quick charge when you're running around, at the beach or shops."

A two-hour session on each charger will typically provide enough power for about 200km of driving, with a full charge costing about $35 depending on the car's battery capacity.

Intellihub chief executive Wes Ballantine said the street-side chargers were a convenient public charging option for local motorists.

"Power poles line most streets and that represents an enormous opportunity for local communities needing a range of public charging solutions," he said.

"Motorists can use the chargers while shopping, seeing friends or at the beach. It's as simple as driving up, plugging in, and using the Exploren app to start charging.

"They're an accessible, safe, and practical option for EV charging, particularly for motorists without access to off-street parking."

The chargers are located at Harrison Street Cardiff, Beach Road Redhead, Bridge Street Morisset, two at Station Street Morisset, Smith Street at Charlestown and Ocean Street Dudley.

Mr Conroy said it was important that EV drivers in regional areas like Lake Macquarie did not miss out on public charging infrastructure.

"The project is supported by the Australian Government and will ensure that EV drivers around Lake Macquarie and the Lower Hunter can access public charging infrastructure," he said.

"A diverse mix of public and private EV charging solutions are an important way to support the growing numbers of motorists choosing electric vehicles here and outside our region."

According to the Electric Vehicle Council, about nine per cent of all new car sales in Australia last year were electric vehicles.

It estimates there are now more than 180,000 EVs on Australian roads.

The Australian Energy Market Commission estimates that there will be 22 million EVs in Australia by 2050.

Fifty chargers are being installed across Sydney under the pilot project. It's designed to test the commercial, regulatory and customer demand for pole mounted EV chargers.

Public charging will be managed via the Exploren platform, developed by leading Australian EV software and hardware providers EVSE.