Dixon Park became the home of an Australia-first on Tuesday, with Ausgrid welcoming the first power pole mounted electric vehicle charger in its car park.
The installation is part of a broader program that aims to deliver up to 30,000 pole mounted EV chargers across the Ausgrid network by 2029.
The beachfront location that sits between Merewether and Bar Beach was deemed the idyllic choice given its available parking bays and end-of-the-line electricity pole.
It took City of Newcastle just three weeks to confirm its interest in the program and 24 hours to have it installed.
The charger is expected to be one of many to roll out across the city in coming months, with suburbs like Newcastle East and Hamilton being hinted as possible locations.
It takes four hours to charge a standard electric vehicle using the pole-mounted charger and costs $0.50 per KW/h flat rate.
Ausgrid CEO Richard Gross, who visited Newcastle to officially open the charger, reiterated the electricity giant’s commitment to striving toward an affordable, resilient and net-zero future using existing infrastructure.
“We are incredibly excited to be delivering this innovative Australian first with the City of Newcastle and EVX,” he said.
“These pole-mounted chargers will help to address EV accessibility by providing chargers for people without home systems, and those traveling outside of their local areas.
“We believe it is our role as the electricity distributor to seek opportunities to help deliver innovative technologies for our customers, and we’re excited to continue rolling out this program across our network.”
Councillor Carol Duncan said the installation reiterated City of Newcastle’s commitment to creating a sustainable future for the city.
“As part of City of Newcastle’s Climate Action Plan, we have set an aspirational goal of seeing 10,000 registered electric vehicles in our city by 2025,” she explained.
“To achieve that we need to work with our partners such as Ausgrid and EVX to support the supply of suitable charging stations, both in new buildings and in public places.
“I welcome the installation of this charger at Dixon Park beach, which will allow our community or visitors to charge their car while enjoying our beaches, cafes, parks and pathways.”
EVX CEO Andrew Forster echoed those sentiments.
“The project will make EV charging more accessible and affordable for both residents and visitors to Newcastle while contributing to the battle against climate change,” he said.
Pole-mounted chargers are faster and cheaper to deploy than other kerbside charging units, and they don’t add to urban clutter, causing less disruption to the surrounding communities.
It comes after a year of strong innovation announcements from Ausgrid, including the launch of its third community battery at Cameron Park in Lake Macquarie.
To activate the EV charger, download the EVX app.