Residential Strata EV Ready Pilot Study

You can read more information on our Making buildings EV ready webpage which includes a guide on Making your strata building EV ready. If you want to get into the technical detail there are also links to reports written by specialist consultants, Urbis.

Standalone homes can charge their EVs using a standard power point. Charging an EV in apartments and some townhouses can come with additional challenges.

This is because the power supplied to parking facilities in many existing strata buildings is managed by the owners corporation, rather than individual unit owners. This creates challenges in managing energy load and billing individual owners for charging.

About 28% of ACT residents living in multi-unit developments. To help these residents access EV charging, it is important to develop pathways to make some existing developments EV ready. This Pilot will seek to understand the scale and cost of the challenge of making different types of residential strata buildings EV ready.

The ACT Government is already enacting changes to the planning system as part of the new Territory Plan that will require all new multi-unit commercial and residential developments to be designed and built EV ready. This will make sure we’re setting our city up for an all-electric future, and support EV uptake.

There is currently no requirement for existing strata buildings to be EV ready. In fact, it will not make financial sense for some existing buildings to be made EV ready yet.

The new planning regulations introduced in January 2024 will mean that all new strata buildings will need to be built EV ready.

Installing EV chargers safely and equitably into existing multi-unit buildings, such as apartment and townhouse developments, can be more complex and costly than during construction or at a standalone home. It is not a matter of just allowing residents to install EV chargers when they want to.

In many existing strata buildings the power supplied to parking facilities is managed by the owners corporation, rather than individual unit owners. This creates challenges in managing energy load and billing individual owners for charging.

The first step in supporting EV charging in these buildings is to make them EV ready, before residents install their own EV chargers. This Pilot will seek to understand the scale and cost of the challenge in the Territory in order to inform future policy.

Developing pathways to transition residents in multi-unit developments to EVs will be a complex challenge and likely to require a mix of solutions to cater for different buildings and the needs of residents.

This Pilot is the first step and will provide learnings that can inform future policy aimed at supporting residents in apartment buildings transition to EVs.

In most townhouse complexes, residents can charge an EV by simply connecting to a power outlet in their unit’s attached carport or garage. This Pilot is for apartment buildings and townhouse complexes where individual units do not have metered power supply in their parking spaces.

Shared chargers may be a good solution for buildings where there is not enough electrical capacity, or the EV ready solution is too expensive. However the EV ready developments final report by Urbis advises that this ‘wash bay’ model is not likely to be a viable charging solution in many buildings.

Where it is feasible and cost effective, Urbis recommends that the best long-term solution is to make a building EV ready. Being EV ready gives equal charging access to all residents and allows them to charge at a time that suits them. As a first step, it is important to understand the scale and cost of making strata buildings EV ready. This is a more future-focussed than installing a few chargers for shared use.

Many residents do not yet have an EV and do not yet need a charger. By providing support to make buildings EV ready, we have removed the greatest barrier to unit owners installing a charger when they are ready.

Once buildings have been made EV ready, individual unit owners can access the Sustainable Household Scheme for an interest free loan of up to $15,000. The loans can assist with the purchase an EV or EV charger at a time that suits them.

The feasibility study will include tailored advice from industry experts on the technical requirements and anticipated costs of getting a building EV ready. These will then be used to help educate other owners corporations to make the transition.

A proper feasibility study ensures that the electrical capacity and site design is sufficient to allow for a gradual increase in chargers to be installed.

We have already sourced qualified contractors to conduct the studies and prepare an EV ready design and costing for your residential strata in line with our requirements.

You are still eligible to apply, however if your application is successful, a new feasibility study will need to be undertaken. This will ensure that the quote and design aligns with the Pilot’s requirements. Any previous feasibility study should be attached to your application.

The contractor will need access to the car parking area, switch board and distribution board. It will be the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that access on the day of the site visit. This may include notifying residents and unlocking required areas. The contractor will confirm required access before the site visit.

We know that many Canberra unit owners are keen to install EV chargers now.  Many owners corporations also have questions and concerns about the costs and the process.

We therefore need to understand the scale and cost of the challenge soon so that we can start educating owners corporations and begin developing transition pathways for unit owners.

The successful applicants will represent different types of strata buildings in the ACT and will be used as case studies to educate other owners corporations on the journey, the costs and solutions.