Queensland electric-car charging start-up pulls the plug on Australian production

Almost 200 Australian jobs will be lost after fledgling Queensland-based electric-car charging firm Tritium announced it would end production of its fast-chargers in Brisbane and move its entire operations to the US.

As reported by the Australian Financial Review (AFR), the decision comes after Tritium unsuccessfully campaigned for State and Federal Government funding in an attempt to avoid being removed from the Nasdaq stock exchange – due to its shares spending more than 30 days with a value of less than $US1.

The AFR reports Tritium had applied for a $90 million funding boost from the Queensland Government late last month, but was ultimately denied – with its shares currently valued at $US0.20, down from a high of $US10.30 in November 2021.

According to the publication, approximately 200 jobs will be cut from the company’s factory in Murarrie – approximately 25 minutes east of Brisbane’s CBD – where the firm builds its electric-car chargers, though an equally-sized research and development team will stay on.

“This transition is aligned with the company’s plan to be profitable in 2024,” Tritium chief executive Jane Hunter said in a media statement. 

“The implementation of this plan, including the closure of the Brisbane factory and consolidating our manufacturing operations in Tennessee, supports the ongoing market competitiveness and positioning of the company as a world leader in its category ... while bringing our manufacturing operations closer to our largest markets.”

The electric-car charging company opened its Tennessee factory in 2022 with US President Joe Biden as a guest, who used the event as a platform to announce reforms for zero-tailpipe-emissions vehicle policies in the country.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had also made several visits to Tritium's Brisbane production facility, saying in March 2023: "Every time I come back, I hear about more revenue, more jobs being created, and more countries where Australia is exporting to. This is a great success story here."

Tritium’s decision to pull its manufacturing resources from Australia has already led to investors such as billionaire mining executive Brian Flannery halting funding for the company, according to the AFR.

In January, oil giant BP announced it had placed an order for more than 1000 of Tritium’s fast-chargers, with plans to roll the units out across Australia, the US, the UK and Europe.

The company also won Drive’s 2022 ‘Best Automotive Innovation’ of the year award, after selling more than 7000 of its 350kW fast-chargers to customers in approximately 40 countries.