RAA to roll out 140 new EV charging locations in South Australia in $12.4m plan

The South Australian motorist’s association, the RAA, will oversee the roll out of a $12.4 million state-wide electric vehicle charging network to meet the likes of the RACV network in Victoria and NRMA’s one in NSW.

Funded by the South Australian government and in partnership with Chargefox, the RAA (Royal Automobile Association) will install 536 charging points at 140 locations throughout the state, from Mount Gambier in the state’s south-east to Marla in the north and the Border Village in the west.

Importantly, three-quarters of the new charging sites will be in rural and regional locations, with a maximum 200km drive between sites enabling travel throughout the state by electric vehicles with ranges on the shorter end of the spectrum.

“We know that drivers’ enthusiasm for EVs is curbed by the availability of charging points, so this new network will go a long way to allaying that range anxiety,” said RAA managing director Ian Stone in a statement.

The announcement of the new network also comes just months after South Australia made a $3,000 purchase rebate and three years free registration available to the first 7,000 drivers buying a new electric car, in line with the states of NSW and Victoria. 984 new electric cars were purchased in 2021 in the state, and with the rebate introduced in December, it is expected that uptake will jump dramatically in 2022.

It is expected that the cost to charge at the new RAA EV charging sites will cost 35c per kilowatt hour.

This means, for example, that charging a Tesla Model 3 with 60kWh battery and 448km range when full (WLTP – actual range depends on driving conditions and style) from 10-90% will cost $16.80.

Costs for other electric models depends on the size of the battery, and how much range this will add depends on the efficiency of the vehicle, driving conditions and style.

South Australian deputy premier and energy minister Dan van Holst Pellekaan says that by rolling out a statewide network, the government is sending a ” clear message” that the state wants to play a leading role in the EV transition.

Transitioning to electric vehicles is also expected to help stabilise the state’s grid by absorbing abundant excess power generated by wind and solar renewables, as well as help the state reach 100% net renewables by 2030, a goal that it already intermittently achieved in late 2021.

SA Power Networks is already embracing EVs, having added five all-electric vehicles recently to its fleet. “As fleet operators, we are always looking for ways to reduce our fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions,” said CEO Rob Stobbe.