3 December 2022
Kimberley Echo reported on the three electric vehicle MG Chargehubs will be installed at The Cambridge by December.
Matt Dear, Cambridge Gulf Limited COO, points out in the article;
- There are six EV chargers spread out at stops along the routes between Kununurra and Darwin and another five on the Great Northern Highway heading west to Broome.
- Kununurra is the best place to put in EV chargers, as our primary power is hydro-renewable.
- The Cambridge and CGL vehicles used in day to day operations, will change over to EVs
You can check out the full article here:
www.thewest.com.au/news/broome-advertiser/the-cambridge-is-plugging-into-the-future-with-more-electric-vehicle-chargers-for-kununurra-c-8925021
(Thu, 24 November 2022)
In a town where Nissan Patrols and Toyota LandCruisers rule it is a rare sight to see an electric-operated Tesla roll down the main street.
But that hasn’t stopped one hotel from installing electric vehicle chargers.
Cambridge Gulf Limited COO Mat Dear knows it’s only a matter of time before technology and infrastructure bring Tesla grey nomads to Kununurra.
“If you build it, surely they will come,” he said.
The company’s Cambridge Hotel received grants from car manufacturer MG to install three, 11kW three phase units at their hotel.
The MG Chargehubs will be up and running by December.
“They’re designed for charging overnight and hit the road again the next morning,” Mr Dear said.
The Cambridge Hotel will join three EV charge providers already in town, at Kununurra Agricultural Showgrounds, Kununurra Lakeside Resort and Kimberley Waterfront Holiday Park and Discovery Parks.
According to EV website PlugShare, EV drivers have used the chargers 20 times since 2016.
It may be surprising to know these EV adventurers don’t just charge up in Kununurra to find themselves stranded a few hundred kilometres along the Victoria or Great Northern highways.
There are six EV chargers spread out at stops along the routes between Kununurra and Darwin and another five on the Great Northern Highway heading west to Broome.
“The distance the EV can go depends on the car,” Mr Dear said.
“They do make EVs that can go 500, 600, 800km, that is not an issue, they do exist.”
Mr Dear said it didn’t get much greener than charging your EV vehicle with electricity sourced from Lake Argyle.
“Kununurra is the best place to put in EV chargers. Our primary power is hydro-renewable, so it makes the most sense to put in an EV here.
“Our vehicles will change over to EVs which we will utilise in our day-to-day operations, so if it is not used by customers it will be used by us.’’
Mr Dear said the game-changer would be when Australia’s longest electric vehicle fast-charging network, from Kununurra to Esperance and Eucla in the State’s south-east, was completed in 2024.
The State Government is working with electricity providers Horizon Power and Synergy on the project.
The network, will consist of 98 EV charging stations at 49 locations which will take as little as 15 minutes to charge a vehicle.
“That is the single-biggest driver; once that is completed, there will be customers. It’s coming,” Mr Dear said.