Q&A
Tim Washington of JET Charge who also Chairs the Electric Vehicle Council foresees the day when electric vehicles serve as a valuable energy storage device and a generator
INSIGHTS FROM TIM WASHINGTON, CO-FOUNDER JET CHARGE AND CHARGEFOX When Tim Washington of JET Charge addresses industry conferences – a regular occurrence, he’s in high demand – he invariably paints fascinating fresh perspectives on the trajectory of the EV industry. The year 2022 marks one decade since Tim pioneered EV charging by founding JET Charge. Was it a leap of faith, or one based on sound reasoning fused with his trademark foresight? Here we look at the former corporate lawyer’s foray into the world of electric vehicles and his foothold as Australia’s leading provider of charging infrastructure. 36 AUTUMN 2022
What aspects of your background led you to EVs?
family business that actually prepared me for the
TIM: I’ve always loved technology. I think those
my own business.
who really believe and look forward to new
Did you suffer any early doubts about demand for JET Charge services here in Australia or were you confident from get go about the industry’s traction?
technology are always taking a leap of faith – this one will be better, it will make my life easier, more entertaining, more enjoyable. That and my love of and cars was ultimately combined when I started looking at EVs. This is ‘something’, I thought. I guess in our crazy startup world where, at least at the start, belief is more important than a slick pitch deck, ‘something’ was enough. By the time my co-founder, Ellen Liang, and I travelled to Scandinavia, including Norway, we
emotional turmoil that would come from starting
TIM: I suffer doubts all the time! I guess the difference is that doubts, which I think is an ‘I am helpless’ word, turns into problems. I can solve problems – it’s harder for me to solve doubts. At the start of my journey almost every person I spoke with, including my family, told me that I was making a mistake. Everyone. The only people who believed in us were my co-founders Ellen
had already made up our minds that we were
and Jay [Jay + Ellen + Tim = business name JET],
going to get into EV charging. When we arrived
and the early folk at Tesla Australia.
we realised just how fast we needed to move, as this transition was coming hard and fast. My background in the law definitely helped me
When I saw that there was a clear trend towards EVs being cheaper to buy, cheaper to run, and the convenience of charging at home, I
speak with incumbent industries, especially at
knew it was only a matter of time. Every criticism
the higher level, but it was my five-year stint in the
that was levelled at EVs at the time was timing
