Regional hub triples public EV charging network, as electric car uptake climbs

The City of Newcastle announced this week that it is close to completing the tripling of its public electric vehicle (EV) charging network, with 34 new charging ports being added across 11 locations around the city.

Backed by a $270,000 grant from the NSW government as part of the EV Kerbside Charging Grants, new chargers are already in operation at Lambton, Wallsend, Hamilton, Stockton, Adamstown, Mayfield, Newcastle, Newcastle East and Wickham.

Additional chargers will be installed at Beresfield and Georgetown in the coming weeks.

Charging speeds vary from 7kW at sites in Newcastle East and Stockton, up to 60kW at Hamilton and Georgetown.

The full list of charging sites can be found here.

The 34 new chargers build on the City of Newcastle’s existing charging infrastructure, which includes chargers at Wharf Road, No. 2 Sportsground, and Laman and Perkins Streets in the CBD.

“Our Newcastle Environment Strategy has a target of 52% of all new car registrations being EVs by 2030-31,” said Michelle Bisson, the City of Newcastle’s executive director for planning and environment.

“The signs are already encouraging, with more than 1,350 EVs currently registered in Newcastle, a number which has risen by more than 1000% in the past four years.

“One of the challenges, however, is that many drivers lack access to off-street parking to charge an EV.

“Increasing the availability of public chargers in different suburbs is an important step in achieving our goal of driving EV uptake and creating a cleaner, quieter, and lower emissions city.”

The first round of the New South Wales government’s EV Kerbside Charging Grants unlocked $4.1 million in co-funding for 671 new EV charging ports at 391 sites across both Sydney and Newcastle.

A second round, announced in July 2024, provided a further $4.5 million to unlock kerbside charging in 16 additional local government areas around the state.