Ampol receives another $100 million to implement 200 fast charging stations for electric vehicles and renewable fuels

Gasoline refining and retail giant Ampol has secured another $100 million from the federal government to help it roll out 200 fast-charging stations for electric vehicles by 2025 and continue its push into renewable fuels and other technologies.

The new funds will be provided in the form of a loan through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) and will also be used to support hydrogen refuelling infrastructure (if any hydrogen cars can be found) and solar installations at retail outlets and charging points.

Ampol has already secured funding from the New South Wales State Government and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to begin implementing fast charging stations for electric vehicles under the AMPCharge brand.

However, it missed its target of having more than 180 charging stations by the end of 2023, with just 82 charging stations installed across 36 locations. The company’s 2023 annual report blamed delays in grid connections and landowners.

“Despite our efforts, the pace of implementation has been limited by the time required to obtain grid connection approvals from numerous grid service providers and other development permits, including cooperation with external landowners,” it said.

“This meant only 82 bays could be launched in 2023, with many more at various stages of completion. We are continuing to manage the approval processes as we continue to roll out the EV charging network in 2024.”

The company had aimed to have 300 charging stations by the end of 2024, although it is unclear how many of those will be delivered in time. In April this year, it announced a deal with shopping centre owner Stockland to locate more than 100 electric vehicle charging stations.

The new funding comes a day after CEFC announced a $20 million investment in Splend to help it operate another 500 electric vehicles for car-sharing.

Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said charging infrastructure for electric vehicles was essential as the number of vehicles increased. The announcement also coincided with an update to the federal government’s national electric vehicle strategy.

“There are more than 200,000 electric vehicles on our roads, and more affordable electric vehicles are coming to market,” Bowen said. “There are now 22 electric vehicle models sold in Australia for less than $60,000, up from 14 in 2022.

“As more Australians move to cheaper-to-run electric vehicles, we need to make sure we keep up with demand for charging. We’ve already seen the number of EV charging locations grow from 464 in December 2022 to around 900 by early 2024.”

The financing agreement with Ampol also includes rooftop solar panels. The company has installed about 50 kWQ of rooftop solar power at each of its retail locations that have EV chargers. By the end of last year, solar panels had been installed at 25 locations.

The funding also supports renewable fuels programs, including the recently announced feasibility study for a large-scale renewable fuels facility at Ampol’s Lytton refinery in Brisbane, which will produce low-emission liquid fuels, including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel.