Tritium to make EV chargers in the US
US President Joe Biden has praised Queensland company Tritium’s plans for a giant factory in Tennessee, supporting his decarbonisation agenda.
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Brisbane-based electric vehicle charging company Tritium will build a giant factory in the US as the world’s biggest economy moves to decarbonise its transport network.
Tritium will open a factory in Lebanon, Tennessee, capable of producing up to 30,000 charging stations a year, backing President Joe Biden’s ambitions to create a national network of chargers.
President Biden praised the investment by Tritium, which will create 500 jobs, in an announcement at the White House with the company’s chief executive Jane Hunter.
Shares in Tritium, which was founded in 2001 by three PhD graduates who won a solar-powered car competition, soared more than 65 per cent to $1.95 on Nasdaq.
President Biden’s $US7.5bn infrastructure plan includes a national chain of EV charging stations across the country to facilitate long-distance travel, as well as shorter distance travel within communities.
“The US will lead the world in electric vehicles,” said President Biden. “Up until now, China had been in the front but that is about to change. Up and down the country, people will have easy access to quick and easy electric charging stations made by Tritium with American parts and labour.
“It also will save American drivers billions of dollars of gasoline, reduce air pollution and keep families healthier as we tackle climate change.”
Ms Hunter said the investment by the Biden Administration had encouraged the company to pivot to manufacturing in the US. The investment in the factory is the first big announcement by Tritium since it listed on the Nasdaq last month.
She said Tritium was set to expand its global manufacturing capacity and poised to overtake engineering giant ABB as the world’s biggest EV charger maker. The Tennessee factory is expected to house up to six production lines for Tritium’s fast chargers.
Despite the increasing global focus of Tritium, Brisbane would remain the engineering hub for the company, she said. “Brisbane is a place where people want to work because of the lifestyle,” said Ms Hunter, a former executive at Boeing.
As a US public company, Tritium was well positioned to benefit from the accelerating long-term growth of the global electric vehicle market, she said.
“Tritium’s investment in a US-based, cutting-edge facility for manufacturing is part of our strong push toward global growth in support of the e-mobility industry,” said Ms Hunter.
“We are thrilled to work with the US federal government and the state of Tennessee on this initiative. With the help of the hard-working residents of Tennessee, we expect to double or even triple our charger production capacity to further our product distribution throughout the United States.”
Tritium, which exports most of its chargers to the US and Europe, last year released a new and more powerful charging system that also provides new payment systems.
The new charger eliminated credit card payments allowing customers to pay through the charging cable when it communicates to the car directly. The firm’s fastest units can add about 350km of driving range in 10 minutes of charging, according to the company.
Tritium also has selected by the US Army to help its efforts to convert its vehicles – including combat vehicles – to electric power.
The company has so far deployed thousands of charging stations in 38 countries for customers including Nissan, Honda, the NASA Visitor Center, Topgolf, Circle-K, Harley-Davidson and Caltech.
Adding electric car charging infrastructure is seen as vital for automakers to spur sales, and crucial to governments as they seek to phase out combustion engine vehicles.
Originally published as Tritium to make EV chargers in the US
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