E-mobility insights from Europe
WORDS BY KATE THOMSON , EXECUTIVE GENERAL MANAGER , RETAIL AUSTRALIA , AMPOL
As a long-term battery electric vehicle ( EV ) owner and executive in the Australian retail sector , I am often asked about barriers and challenges to transition for Australian motorists and for perspectives on how the rise of EVs will shape the future of our service stations and other infrastructure .
Many point to the strong growth in EVs and charging infrastructure across Europe as useful markers of how uptake can be accelerated and how our retail networks will shift to meet changing customer needs .
While it is always difficult to make comparisons given Australia ’ s unique geography , vehicle ownership demographics and the recent constraints in supply chains that have restricted EV supply , the experience in Europe provides some useful insight and lessons on how our market and networks will and should evolve .
Late last year I had the opportunity to spend time in Europe to meet and engage with a range of industry stakeholders , including manufacturers , infrastructure providers and retail network owners and operators . These engagements – in particular our experiences in Norway – provided some useful perspective on the rollout of charging infrastructure in Australia and the role our retail business will play in supporting transition .
Norway has the world ’ s largest EV ownership per capita and is a global leader in EV uptake . The Norwegian Government has set the ambitious target of 100 % of all new car sales being zeroemission by 2025 . The country is also delivering fast charging infrastructure every 50 kilometres to support this target . Over 2 million new EVs are still required to be delivered over the next two years to achieve it , however strong policy incentives are in place to drive uptake .
In Australia , EV sales , excluding plug-in hybrids , reached almost 7 % of all new cars purchased in the Australian light vehicle market in February , and this will continue to increase as supply chain pressures abate further . The release of the Federal Government ’ s National Electric Vehicle Strategy demonstrates strong commitment towards EV uptake , and we have also seen a renewed focus on state and federal government vehicle incentives . The commitment to introduce a fuel efficiency standard is also expected to support the uptake of lower emissions vehicles .
For Ampol , the rollout of our AmpCharge EV charging solution commenced in 2022 and includes an initial commitment to deliver EV fastcharging at more than 100 retail sites with over 300 charging bays . We continue to make good progress with delivery of this strategy .
So what lessons can we take from Norway for our business and the broader rollout in Australia ?
First , a large proportion of EV owners have parking at home and a home charging offer is important . At the same time , there is a strong ongoing need for public charging . The experience in Norway demonstrates that as people get more confident with on-the-go ultra-fast charging , more of it occurs on-the-go rather than at home .
This trend and rapid growth in EV numbers in Norway has created congestion challenges for existing public charging infrastructure . What was deemed adequate EV charging bay numbers a decade ago is not adequate today , forcing Norway to find ways to quickly expand beyond initial commitments .
Congestion challenges are particularly acute in high density areas , with traffic management at retail sites in some places problematic . Many
14 ISSUE 40 MAY 2023 / WWW . AFMA . ORG . AU