Motoring club rolls out first ‘ultra-rapid’ 200 kW EV charger in South Australia

The Royal Automobile Association of South Australia (RAA) has unveiled the first of 17 ultra-rapid charging stations for its South Australian based charging network – a 200kW facility located at Mount Barket’s Homemaker Centre.

The 17 ultra-rapid chargers are part of a larger RAA Charge Network, which will make up 140 charging sites around South Australia. Around 50% of the charging sites have already gone live.

The chargers are all powered by 100% renewable energy. The first of the slightly slower, 150 kW ‘rapid’ charging site also went live in July this year.

“All our ultra-rapid chargers will be installed in towns and tourist centres, giving more South Aussies the confidence to make their next road trip all-electric,” says RAA CEO Nick Reade.

RAA is partnering with the State Government to build South Australia’s first border-to-border network which will be completed next year. Currently there are some parts of regional SA where the distance between charging points is over 400 km. This according to RAA makes these areas ‘off-limits’ to EVs.

“We’re committed to making ‘range anxiety’ a thing of the past, with 98 per cent of the charging sites no more than 200 km apart,” Reade said.

The network has been financed by the South Australian government, with a $12.35 million grant given to the project.

Each of the ultra-rapid chargers will have four charging bays available to use 24/7 through the Chargefox app. They will be accessible to both CCS and CHAdeMO plugs.

The network has been financed by the South Australian government, with a $12.35 million grant given to the project.

The current rapid or ultra rapid sites currently under construction are below:

Rapid 150kW sites:

• Village Green Council Carpark, Normanville
• Foreshore Carpark, Cowell
• Blackwood Community Centre, Blackwood
• Klose’s Supermarket, Woodside
• Riverfront Reserve, Morgan
• Churchill Centre, Kilburn
• District Council Carpark, Tumby Bay

Ultra-rapid 200kW sites:

• Waikerie Civic Centre, Waikerie
• City of Burnside Council carpark, Burnside

Other planned ultra-rapid 200kW sites include for Bordertown, Clare, Mt Gambier, and Port Augusta.