First Ampol EV charger site goes live and is free until August

Petrol retail Ampol has opened its first electric vehicle fast-charging site, just months after the launch of its AmpCharge brand and its push into the EV infrastucture game.

Ampol has received funding of $7.05 million from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)  to help its plans to roll out 120 sites in total by late 2023, although its petrol retailing margins have risen to “unprecedented” levels as prices at the petrol pump soar.

The first of five new sites in the initial rollout of AmpCharge has officially opened in Alexandria in Sydney. The site has one ABB Terra184 DC fast charger unit which has both a CCS2 and a CHAdeMO port. The chargers are capable of charging up to 150kW using the CCS2 port.

The other sites are expected to have the same chargers and will open before September this year.

Ampol is currently offering free charging until the end of August with this first site.

Mixed reactions to Ampol’s first EV charger

The site has already had a number of users according to Plugshare, with drivers sharing images of it being used via the platform.

“Great location, thank you Ampol!” said one driver. “Super easy to use. Love it!” said another.

“Nice setup at the servo for a charge,” said a third.

However, a fourth driver who was apparently in a rush was not happy about the fact the unit has just one cable.

“In use as I drove in with Tesla driver saying they would be another 15min. Went elsewhere. The problem with only one CCS2 cable,” they said.

Charge rates reported by drivers have ranged between 32kW and 64kW. The maximum charge rate achieved depends on how empty a battery is when charging is started, and what the maximum charge rate for the vehicle is; the lower the state of charge, the higher the max rate will be.

It is also influenced by the car make, and the local network constraints.

After an initial free period, the pricing will be set at 60 cents per kWh; at a similar rate to some Evie Networks and Chargefox 350kW sites.

It’s great to see another network launch in Australia. The reliability and footprint of the new AmpCharge network will be the key and lead to higher utilisation by EV owners across Australia.

(Note: This story has been updated to correct the type of charger).