Collie on electric highway

After years of lobbying and inquiring, the people of Collie finally have an electric vehicle charging station courtesy of Synergy.

The 50kW fast charging station was installed and unveiled on Friday by Collie shire president Sarah Stanley, Collie-Preston MLA Mick Murray and Synergy chief executive Jason Waters who were joined at the event by several electric vehicle enthusiasts.

“Synergy is thrilled to provide this EV charger to the Shire of Collie which we hope will continue to support the region’s economic prosperity, as well as help to unlock new opportunities,” Mr Waters said.

The charger was installed near Central Park on Forrest Street, adjacent to Collie’s CBD in a bid to make it as accessible as possible for all EV owners.

Cr Stanley said the new charging station firmly put Collie on the electric highway and helped diversify the town’s already booming tourism potential.

“It’s something the community has called for for many years,” she said.

“It also alleviates the range anxiety that a lot of people have when thinking of buying electric vehicles, they need to know they can get from place to place.

“Electric vehicles are a major consumer of electricity, we’re at the centre of the electricity grid in Western Australia, so it fits in really well.”

The new Collie charging station is the sixth to be installed in the South West, the other locations being Bunbury, Eaton, Harvey, Busselton and Donnybrook, and it can be accessed through the Charge Fox app used by most EVs on the market.

Collie River Valley Marketing chairwoman Julie Hillier welcomed the charger’s installation and described Collie’s addition to the electric highway as exciting.

“It gives the opportunity to bring more diverse tourists to Collie and to see what we’ve got on offer,” she said.