Electric vehicle kerbside charging grants FAQs

Grant funding for round 1 will be available to eligible local governments and charge point operators (CPOs). CPOs are companies that own and/or operate electric vehicle (EV) chargers. 

Yes, however, it is expected that applicants are currently or prospectively in the business of owning and operating kerbside EV charging infrastructure for public use.  

Applications will be assessed on a range of merit criteria listed in table 6 of the funding guidelines. The merit criteria include items relating to applicant capabilities and capacity as well as user experience. These criteria were developed to assess each grant applicant’s capabilities in managing kerbside EV charging infrastructure.  

A project partner is an organisation whose collaboration is critical in fulfilling certain elements of the primary applicant’s proposal. This may include installation services, ongoing maintenance services, or customer service.

If an applicant is relying on the specific experience, capacities, or significant co-funding from another organisation to support their application they may choose to add them as a project partner to their application. Applicants must provide information on the business details and contribution of any project partners.  Refer to the applicant capabilities and capacity merit criterion in table 6 of the funding guidelines for further information. 

If successful, the primary applicant will be required to sign a funding agreement and will be responsible for fulfilling all obligations under that agreement and the funding guidelines.

Yes, an organisation may be a primary applicant and a project partner on different applications as long as co-funding is not sought for the same site.

An application can only have one applicant. All other parties can be listed as project partners. In round 1, the total co-funding is capped at $800,000 per applicant. 

No, applications where any portion of the project costs are being covered by other grant funding (including other NSW Government grants) are not eligible.

All local government areas (LGAs) in NSW have been analysed by population density and residential dwelling type. Round 1 funding will focus on installing kerbside chargers in the LGAs that were assessed as having the least access to off-street parking. The analysis may be reviewed and modified for subsequent funding rounds to ensure program objectives are achieved. 

A list of eligible LGAs can be found in the guidelines. 

Only chargers installed at sites within the eligible LGAs will be eligible for co-funding in round 1. This is due to residents in these LGAs having the least access to off-street parking based on population density and dwelling type. 

Applicants can apply for co-funding for sites across multiple LGAs provided all sites meet the eligibility criteria in the guidelines. There is no limit to the number of sites in an application, provided the total funding requested does not exceed $800,000 ex GST. 

Each application must propose a minimum of 4 charging sites. A charging site is defined as the precise location of a proposed charger or group of chargers identified by street name and nearest exact address. Each application must also propose a minimum of 8 charge ports in total across their application, for example: 

• 4 sites with dual port chargers 
• 8 sites with single port chargers 
• 2 sites with dual port chargers and 4 sites with single port chargers. 

Applicants are encouraged to submit funding requests for more than the minimum number of charging sites, as not all requested sites may be successful. 

Kerbside chargers can be installed:

• in the road verge, adjacent to an area where a vehicle may lawfully be parked; or  
• on other council owned and managed land e.g. public council carparks, or community facilities managed by council parking rangers.

A council can provide letters of support to multiple CPOs for the same proposed kerbside charging sites within its LGA. However, a CPO cannot apply for co- funding for the same site through multiple applications. CPOs may only apply once themselves but may be project partners in other applications.

A grant recipient may nominate a new site if a charger cannot be installed on an approved site through a change request process. However, the new site must meet all program requirements, and the addition of the new site must not exceed the total co-funding cap of $800,000 per applicant. Co-funding for any new site will be considered on a case-by-case basis and is entirely at the discretion of the NSW Government.  Applicants will not be able to request more than the total co-funding amounts initially requested. 

Where installation cannot proceed following funding approval, an applicant may also request to withdraw a site by emailing [email protected]. 

The NSW Government is not mandating EV charging only parking spaces. EV only parking restrictions should match the expected dwell times at the site. The updated NSW Government regulatory signage allows for time restricted EV only parking. Any changes to existing parking conditions are subject to council traffic committee approval and should be negotiated between CPOs and the council.

The Road Transport Legislation Amendment Regulation 2022 provides guidance on the regulation of EV only parking restrictions.

Co-funding can only be used for costs related to the installation of kerbside charging infrastructure and cannot be used for ongoing, operational, or maintenance costs unless the applicant is eligible for co-funding for software (see question above). Please refer to the eligible expenditure section of the guidelines for further details. 

Yes, bay painting, line marking, and signage costs are eligible for co-funding. 

No, lease costs are considered operational and are not eligible for co-funding. 

No. Chargers must be operational within 12 months of the signing of a funding agreement with the NSW Government. 

It is recommended all questions are completed as thoroughly as possible to ensure your sites have the best chance of being selected for co-funding. Each application will be reviewed by an assessment panel with the final decision based on competitive analysis of sites across all applications and the applicant’s ability to address the merit criteria. 

Yes. We are planning additional funding rounds between 2023 and 2026. Unsuccessful applicants can apply for the same or different sites in future funding rounds, provided these sites meet program objectives and eligibility requirements. 

NSW Government engaged an external probity advisory firm, O’Connor Marsden & Associates Pty Ltd, to ensure the process is fair to all applicants and there is no bias in the selection of charging stations. Please email [email protected] with any questions or queries about the grants. 

It is the NSW Government’s policy to not disclose merit criteria weightings. Applicants are encouraged to address all criteria, as best they can, no matter the weighting.

Each site will be assessed on its own merits. Applicants must provide a rationale for selecting each charging site. The site will be assessed on how it delivers on the program objectives and services residents who lack access to off-street parking. For further information around merit assessment please refer to table 6 in the funding guidelines. 

The kerbside charging map provides locations of existing chargers. It may help applicants identify the locations with a keen need for kerbside chargers based on population density and dwelling type. This map is only a guide.

Where the applicant will be using their own, proprietary software (for example, a CPO is the applicant and has their own software), they will not be eligible for co-funding for software. 

Where the applicant will be procuring software from another organisation (for example, a local government is the applicant), they will be eligible to apply for co-funding of up to 80% of the cost of a three-year software subscription for each charger. 

The 99% uptime requirement is a measure of reliability and relates to the requirement that chargers shall be operational, 99% of the time over a one-year period. Each co-funded charger does not need to have a 99% uptime as long as an average of 99% uptime is achieved across all the applicant’s co-funded chargers.

Successful grant recipients will be required to report on uptime every 6 months. The NSW Government may also conduct random spot checks on funded installations. 

No, only socketed EV chargers included on the NSW Government approved EV charging hardware list are eligible for co-funding under the program.  

The kerbside grant guidelines define a ‘dual port’ charger as “an EV charger with 2 charge ports capable of charging 2 vehicles simultaneously.”

If a DC charger is only capable of charging one vehicle at a time (even if it is described as having ‘dual charging ports’), it would be considered as a single port charger and eligible for up to $10,000 in funding.

Yes, a 20 kW DC 3-phase charger is eligible under the program provided it meets all other technical requirements listed in table 4 of the grant guidelines.

The intention of the minimum power output requirement in the guidelines is to ensure all AC chargers can supply at least 7 kW of power per phase. This requirement will ensure EVs equipped with single-phase onboard chargers are adequately serviced. 

Yes, applicants can propose hardware or software that is not listed on the EVC list as long as it meets the EV charger technical requirements in the guidelines.

Yes, chargers may be installed with load management capabilities to ensure efficient power use and maximise usage of chargers.

Payments to successful applicants will be made in accordance with the milestones outlined in the guidelines. 

To be eligible for co-funding, applicants must provide letters of support from each council where proposed chargers are to be located. 

For any chargers that interact with an electricity supply authority asset (for example, electricity pole mounted, lighting pole mounted or kiosk EV chargers), applicants must also provide a letter of support from the relevant electricity supply authority. 

Letters of support from councils must provide the intended site addresses of the chargers and at a minimum must confirm that all chargers: 

• do not conflict with any existing or planned bike lanes 
• are not  located where the road is scheduled for re-development in the next 2 years. 

Here is an example letter of support. 

The list of eligible LGAs may be reviewed and modified for subsequent funding rounds to ensure program objectives continue to be met.

In the meantime, regional councils may choose to apply for funding through the Destination charging grants program. We encourage you to subscribe to the Net Zero Transport newsletter to be notified when this grant becomes available.

Any submission issues for the online grants management platform (SmartyGrants) can contact the SmartyGrants help desk at [email protected]. The help desk team are available during business hours. 

EV technical advice or grant relevant questions can be submitted by email to [email protected]. The Net Zero Transport team aim to respond to enquiries within 3 business days. 

An online information session was held on Friday 28 July 2023. You can watch a recording of the session here.

Sign up to our EV mailing list to be one of the first to know about future information sessions and program updates. 

Following the information session, additional questions can be directed to [email protected]. 

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If collecting your personal information, we will provide you with a privacy statement at the time of collection that details how this information will be managed in accordance with privacy law. 

Information of a confidential nature provided as part of, or in connection with any application, will be treated as commercial-in-confidence information and only disclosed with the consent of the applicant. 

However, commercial-in-confidence information may be disclosed: 

• to the minister/the minister’s office 
• to department staff 
• to relevant parties for auditing and review purposes 
• where authorised or required by law to be disclosed.