Sales of electric vehicles in Australia have more than doubled since 2022, but experts in the field believe the number could have increased even more if the government had implemented the long-awaited fuel efficiency regulations.
According to data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, sales of battery electric cars (EVs) have increased by 185% year to date to 80,446 units from 28,326 during the same period last year. Thus far this year, EV sales account for 7.2% of total motor vehicle sales in the Australian market.
The Electric Vehicle Council’s chief executive, Behyad Jafari, stated that 2023 would be the third year in a row that electric car sales more than doubled from the previous year as supply began to catch up with demand. Australians have also had access to less expensive models for under $40,000.
However, according to Jafari, the supply coming into Australia was still hampered because the government had not yet legislated a fuel efficiency standard that would cap emissions across a manufacturer’s overall sales and provide an incentive for carmakers to sell low- and zero-emissions vehicles while penalizing those who did not.
Jafari said the delay is pretty disappointing for Australians right across the board. This is essentially due to the federal government, quite honestly, taking much too long to implement these rules. He said:
“Electric vehicles have been doubling every year in Australia but we’re still about a bit over a double behind other markets around the world, so that does just tell us that if we had access to the same type of cars, or the same models of electric vehicles, and the same quantities, that we could be looking at much higher sales again.”
Source: Guardian
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