MG Motor to provide 3000 EV chargers

MG Motor Australia and New Zealand has committed to providing 3000 heavily discounted electric vehicle chargers for major cities and metropolitan centres over three years.

Successful Australian applicants from the hotel and leisure industries will have to pay a one-off A$330 administration fee inclusive of GST, representing savings upwards of A$1660 off the recommended retail price (RRP) for a single MG ChargeHub charging unit.

The move comes as EV sales broke records in August, accounting for 4.4% of all new car purchases made in Australia.

MG says its commitment provides businesses and consumers with the necessary infrastructure to support the transition to electric.

The multi-million-dollar project follows the successful rollout of MG Motor ANZ’s regional charging infrastructure program earlier this year.

Up to 1000 locations across Australia will be provided with EV charging stations, with up to 3000 units offered across Australia and New Zealand.

The news comes off the back of the launch of MG’s highly anticipated 2022 ZS EV, with the entry level Excite priced at A$44,990 driveaway.

“In Australia, purchase price is the biggest barrier to adoption of electric vehicles, closely followed by concern at the lack of public charging infrastructure,” says MG Motor ANZ chief executive Peter Ciao.

“The extension of our Hotel ChargeHub Partner Program demonstrates our commitment to supporting Australian communities, by providing businesses and consumers alike with the necessary infrastructure to support the transition to electric.”

Available in 7kW single-phase and 11kW three-phase configurations, the MG ChargeHub typically retails at A$1990 and A$2090 respectively. The chargers are also Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) compliant so may be installed with third party software to provide operators the option to charge guests for charging.

Interested parties can submit expressions of interest here.

Meanwhile, Ciao told a New Zealand launch of the updated MG ZS EV that the fully electric MG 4 hatch will be introduced there from mid-2023.