Are you tired of going to an electric vehicle (EV) charging station only to find that the cables have been cut by thieves looking to steal copper inside?
Evie Networks, one of Australia’s largest suppliers of electric vehicle charging stations, is launching a solution: CableGuard protectors from a British company called Formula Space.
Daily Sparkz first discovered the cable protectors at Evie’s Chelsea location in Melbourne and Evie has confirmed that CableGuard has also been rolled out to five other locations including Toowoomba, Queensland and Bayside, Victoria, with the other locations being in the Dandenong region.
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“Making sure our chargers are there when you need them is most important to us, which is why we are taking action after a recent cable theft hit our network, particularly in the Dandenong area of Victoria,” Evie CEO Geoff Brady said in a statement.
“We have looked at what has worked overseas to stop copper theft and are now testing CableGuard technology – essentially a protective net around cables – in six locations to ensure a smooth process for our customers.
“We are working with authorities and others in the industry to address this issue and ensure you can continue to charge without interruption.”
According to Formula Space, attempting to cut into a CableGuard-wrapped cable releases a forensically traceable fluid – stored at 1,450 psi – that supposedly links you directly to that specific location.
This glows under UV light and is recorded in a shared database used by police and security partners.
The CableGuard case also includes cut-resistant materials and GPS tracking functionality.
The manufacturer says it adds “negligible” weight to a cable and does not affect its flexibility while wrapping around an existing cable without the need to remove it.
All this extra security is to protect the copper inside, a material whose value continues to increase and therefore attracts thieves who in turn sell it to copper recyclers.
Other companies that have developed anti-theft technology for cables include CatStrap, which has a range of cable protectors and also offers an explosive dye additive called DyeDefender that sprays thieves with blue dye as they cut through, making them easier to identify.
Cable theft is a growing problem in Australia and our country faces this problem alongside countries such as the UK, Germany and the USA.
In July 2024, Automotive News reported that 129 charging cables were stolen from Electrify America charging stations across the U.S. in the first five months of the year, more than in the entire 2023 calendar year (125).
Electrify America has one of the largest charging networks in the US and says replacing cut cables costs $2,000 to $4,000 (approximately A$3,000 to $6,000).
Last October, EnBW reported more than 900 cases of cable theft at more than 130 fast charging locations in Germany.
But despite the rise in copper thefts, experts question the wisdom of taking the time to destroy electric vehicle chargers, stripping the copper from the wires and then finding a buyer – without getting caught by the police, all for a modest profit.
“It’s a complete Sisyphean effort to get money out of coated, small wires,” said Travis Allan, chief legal and public affairs officer for Flo EV Charging Automotive News in 2024.
“A standard Level 2 charging station with a 25-foot cable contains approximately 5 pounds of copper.
“The copper is heavily insulated, so you don’t actually end up with raw copper.”
German provider EnBW also warned thieves that it was hardly a lucrative venture, claiming that a cable contains 4 to 10 kg of copper, which works out to around 50 euros (A$86) per cable if resold.
MORE: Vandalism of public electric vehicle fast chargers is on the rise in Australia
