EV

Melbourne-based company SEA Electric has launched Australia’s first locally-assembled electric truck range, offering a range of emissions-free transport configurations.

The first fully Australian designed and built electric bus has been rolled out for a two-week trial in Sydney as the New South Wales State Government pushes ahead with its plan to convert its entire bus fleet to electric by 2030.

Battery capacity in the distributed and large-scale sectors continues to grow, according the annual reckoning of the SunWiz oracle. Although still a complex proposition, for homeowners, battery potential is beginning to be utilised in the hundreds of megawatts by governments and utilities, with some interesting side hustles in the mid-sized energy-storage category.

The Victorian Government’s push to impose a tax on electric vehicles (EV) is accelerating despite a Federal Government MP warning this week that the uptake of EVs in Australia is too slow, and the industry needs to be supported.

Battery storage manufacturer RedEarth has partnered with a major Australian housing developer to offer new-home buyers solar and solar/battery systems tailored to their needs from the get go – and with the opportunity to sell excess energy at optimised prices where the grid needs it most.

Last year the New South Wales Government announced plans to retire several of the iconic Manly ferries and replace them with smaller vessels. However, the recent launch of the world’s largest electric ferry in Norway has one Aussie billionaire asking whether the new Manly ferries should be electric?

Australia’s laggardly uptake of electric vehicles is set for a boost after Origin Energy announced a partnership with Custom Fleet to provide a holistic solution to EV fleet transition. Fleet cars make up almost half of all new car sales in Australia and upgrading Australia’s commercial vehicles to electric is seen as key to reducing transport emissions.

With reins tightly held by China, a handful of players are trying to prise the production of a core ingredient of lithium-ion batteries out of Goliath’s hand before the battery boom begins in earnest with the electrification of the transport sector. The head of one of those companies, WA start-up International Graphite, spoke to pv magazine Australia about the hunger of both investors and customers, and the surprisingly collaborative race to feed global demand.

Australia’s infrastructure advisory body has added a number of renewable energy-related projects to its priority list, recognising the need for investment in the “once-in-a-lifetime transition from thermal generation to intermittent renewables.”

The first round of funding for the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s Future Fuels Fund is now open to applicants. The first round will look to expand the fast charging network for battery electric vehicles in Australia’s major population centres in an effort to encourage the individual and fleet transition to electric vehicles.