Bowling club bolsters EV charging options

Uralla Bowlo Director and Uralla Deputy Mayor, Councillor Bob Crouch, said the opportunity was there for the taking.

"My role here with the Bowlo is as director and part of that role is to keep an eye out for grants and opportunities that may be suitable for the club," he said.

"The opportunity for the EV destination charging grant came up and naturally I put it to the board as a bit of a business case and we decided to run with it."

The charging stations located at the Uralla Bowlo are two 22kw three-phase port towers.

They will cost electric vehicle drivers $4 for a connection fee and $0.50 cents per kw/h.

For comparison, the NRMA charging station located at the Armidale Visitor Information Centre charges $0.60 per kwh for non-members and $0.54 for members.

The approved total co-funding amount attributed by the NSW government towards the installation of the chargers at the Bowlo was $24,450.

The NSW Climate and Energy Action is investing $20 million to assist regional NSW businesses and councils by co-funding the purchase and installation of EV chargers.

The grants for business initiative are currently in the second round and will close on August 2, 2024.

"I think Uralla is the perfect spot for an EV charging station," Mr Crouch said, echoing the sentiment of Mayor Robert Bell who believes the town is 'uniquely and perfectly positioned to host charging stations for travellers driving electric vehicles."

"The technology is picking up so fast and electric vehicles are now becoming more and more popular."

Nearly 70 per cent of people responded to a 2021 survey that 'range anxiety' was the biggest inhibitor to taking up an electric vehicle, but Cr Crouch said adding additional chargers like this will help alleviate those worries.

"Range anxiety will soon be a thing of the past," Cr Crouch said.

"More and more stations are popping up all the time including some that are publicly available and some that are located in hotels or such that require you to stay at the premises to be able to take advantage of the service.

"At the Bowlo here, we are encouraging travellers as well as local residents to charge their electric vehicle, and while they're here, they can enjoy some of the refreshments on offer at the Bowlo or even take a short walk into town or into beautiful Alma park just across the road."