It is estimated there are more than 10,000 registered electric cars in Victoria, more than double the amount of five years ago.
Widespread predictions that 40 per cent of all new cars sold globally will be EVs by 2030 still appear well beyond the expectation of the Australian market, but the Rochester group is “moving with the times’’.
Only one per cent of passenger vehicle sales in Australia are EVs — a drop in the ocean compared to the almost two million EVs sold in China on an annual basis.
Mr Park told the RBN’s May meeting that Murray-Darling Basin funding could be used to have four units in place in Rochester by the middle of this year.
“We were approved to include charging stations in the proposal, with potential locations being the sports museum or Major’s car park (council section),” he said.
Mr Park has investigated a number of Australian-made units, which cost about $3500.
The Federal Government has delayed offering incentives for people to make the move to EV transportation, which has led to a lack of demand and high prices for EVs.
In turn, that has seen some car companies delay the release of EV models to the Australian market.
Some Australian states and territories offer incentives to EV buyers, which means cheap and affordable EVs will be available in the years to come.
The Victorian Government’s decision to quietly end a $3000 rebate for electric car buyers almost 12 months earlier than planned means there are only 2000-odd subsidies remaining for Victorian electric car buyers who sign a contract before 6pm on June 30, 2023.
Residents of most other states and territories will still have access to rebates on some electric cars, including up to $6000 in Queensland, $3500 in Western Australia and $3000 in NSW and South Australia.
While there are several vehicles in the $100,000-plus category (Jaguar I-pace $151,432 and Tesla Model X $171,559), one MG model is only a tick over $40,000 and another Hyundai model retails for less than $50,000.
Mr Park said he considered the area outside the Rochester Sports Museum as the priority location, with the potential for profits from the EV charging stations to be used for museum purposes.
He had been in contact with V/Line’s regional office and was hopeful of speaking with the Victrack managers of the site, he said.
“The sports museum could benefit from the installation of the charging units,” he said, citing the fact there were no EV chargers available to the public in Rochester, the nearest being Bendigo and Echuca.
Auriga charging stations are built in Melbourne and specialise in an adaptable design to suit tourism attractions where EV owners can plug in and enjoy their day.
It would cost someone in the Hyandai model $21.07 to fully charge their vehicle (allowing for 290 kilometres of driving), while the Tesla long-range EV model would cost about $41.25 for 520 kilometres of travel.
Mr Park said the potential for people to enjoy Rochester while their EV was charging made this concept an attractive option.
“Charging can take anything from 30 minutes to 12 hours, certainly enough time for people to have a look around Rochester, have some lunch, enjoy the sites and spend some money,” he said.
Mr Park said the only EV charging stations in Rochester belonged to the Rochester and District Health Service and were not available for general public use.