Hikotron powering EVs in Waipa

Hikotron will install eight new EV charge points across the Waipa district in the Waikato, with the first coming to Cambridge.

The Waipa District Council has begun a five-year trial agreement with the Waikato company to help create infrastructure that supports the growing number of EVs.

Increased EV support is part of the council’s commitment to reduce the environmental impact of the district’s transport systems, says council transportation manager Bryan Hudson.

“Hikotron will install four EV chargers across the Waipa, converting eight parking spaces into user-pays charge points,” he says.

The first chargers will be installed in the Duke Street carpark beside Cambridge’s New World supermarket. Waipa Networks will be connecting the power supply and expects to complete this in five working days.

Another two chargers will be installed in the Te Awamutu Event Centre car park on Mahoe Street.

Hudson says the locations were chosen due to their proximity to electricity supply and nearness to the town centres – close enough for drivers to access facilities while charging but not taking up prime parking spaces.

“These locations have been picked because they have good lighting for night and day use and are in areas with low traffic numbers and lower speeds, so our visitors can charge their vehicles and get in and out safely.”

The new EV chargers will use alternating current (AC) rather than direct current (DC) and take longer to charge than the existing EV chargers on Queen Street in Cambridge and Scout Lane in Te Awamutu.

Hudson suggests EV charger users make the most of the additional time to shop local.

“These new AC chargers are aimed at local electric vehicle users who may wish to charge up while they are in town, rather than visitors passing through who typically seek to charge up quickly and continue their journey.”

“Charging takes place while the vehicle is parked, giving people more time to shop, eat out, visit friends, attend appointments or meetings, go for a walk, use local facilities and explore Waipa,” Hudson adds.

EV drivers can download the Hikotron mobile app from Google Play or Apple Store. They use the app to scan the QR code on the charger, plug in their vehicle, and then tap on ‘Start charge’. The cable is locked in until the user taps on ‘End charge’. This stops the cable being unplugged while the driver is away.

The Hikotron app also enables users to locate an available charger nearby, monitor how much power is being drawn while charging, and make payments.

The app works for all chargers across the growing Hikotron public network.

The new chargers will be marked and signposted in line with the new national guidelines for electric vehicle charging released in 2021.

Hikotron is ramping up production and site installations and aims to do a capital raise later in the year, inviting investors to email hello@hikotron.com to register their interest.

Click here for more information on Hikotron.