Australian company JOLT Charge plans to install 5000 free EV chargers

Australia is set to benefit from the rollout of 5000 electric vehicle charging stations, as local company JOLT Charge announced it will invest $500million to expand its network.

Looking to build on its existing network, which is currently exclusive to Adelaide but set to expand Australia-wide, JOLT's business model is unique as its chargers use integrated advertising to bring money back into the company – something which enticed new investor BlackRock.

According to the Australian Financial Review, the United States investment firm was drawn to JOLT due to its combination of outdoor advertising in vehicle charging stations, leading to a $100m boost of capital funds towards the company's continued rollout.

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Aiming to build an extra 1000 stations across the next two to three years, JOLT will also stand out from the crowd as it offers the first 7kWh of power for free – with users only being financially charged after the initial hit.

BlackRock Renewable Power managing director, Charlie Reid, told the AFR it had bought a minority interest in JOLT, not only due to the Australian company's business model, but to also help give EVs a boost in Australia.

“We think that their business model, combined with the scale of capital we can bring to bear, creates a pretty interesting opportunity for us, but also will help accelerate the transition to electric vehicles in Australia,” said Reid.

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JOLT's $500m investment in its charging network is over 20 times more than the Australian Government's commitment to EV chargers through its Future Fuels Fund – recently announcing a $25m subsidy to multiple companies for 400 stations.

While other countries have announced plans to ban the production and sale of internal combustion engine-powered vehicles, with the target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, Australia has not committed to any such targets and its EV policy also lags behind the rest of the world.