Leading the charge: Sydney scores two new 400kW ultra-fast DC chargers as Ampol boosts EV charging infrastructure
Australia’s biggest petrol retailer, Ampol, has officially unveiled its next generation 400kW DC fast chargers.
They allow EVs like the recently revealed Volvo EX60 topped up from 10 to 80 per cent in little more than 18 minutes.
The two ultra-fast chargers are being added as part of a 10-bay AmpCharge expansion. The twin ABB 400kW charging posts are at Ampol’s Eastern Creek Westbound service centre.
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While the new 400kW chargers are the first of their kind for the fuel giant’s EV charging network, the new posts share their peak top-up speed with similar chargers operated by suppliers located along the Hume Highway to the south of Sydney and another location in Western Australia.
The new pair of 400kW chargers at the site at Eastern Creek, meanwhile, join an impressive array of a further eight 360kW charging posts that are split on either side of the M4 highway.
Helping operators of battery-powered trucks, or those who tow, four of the 10 bays are drive-through, making entering and exit simple.
Even though the new AmpCharge 400kW chargers now match the fastest in the country, Australia is still lagging countries like China and Europe where megawatt (1000kW) chargers have already been rolled out.
In markets like the UK, megawatt chargers are being used primarily to top up battery-powered trucks used for long-distance haulage.
They reduce overall charging time to between 30-45 minutes, a saving of multiple hours.
The next stage of 1000kW chargers will be spearheaded by BYD, that has announced it will roll out more than 300-megawatt chargers in the UK in 2026 alone to help support the launch of its luxury Denza brand.
Currently, initial trials suggest they can add as much as 500km of charge in just five minutes.
A similar initiative on a smaller scale is planned Down Under.
The Chinese car giant has told EV Central the same flash chargers will also be introduced in Australia from this August, although only 25 are planned to be installed before the end of 2026.
The new 1MW chargers are badly overdue as our outdated charging infrastructure is struggling to keep pace with the launch of new models.
For instance, the mid-size Zeekr 7X takes around 13 minutes for an ultra-fast 10-80 per cent top-up. But only if you can find a charger that offers a 420-450kW rate, well beyond any charger in the country.
