Australia remains unprepared for a dramatic shift towards electric vehicles that isn’t just looming but is a fact of life, according to the NRMA.
“There’s no way Australia is ready, not even close,” said Peter Khoury, the New South Wales and ACT motoring association’s spokesman.
“Our concern is that if Australia doesn’t catch up with the rest of the world when it comes to taking up technology and infrastructure for electric vehicles, we will be left behind.”
It’s now a reality that many nations that build cars for export to Australia are phasing out fossil fuels by 2030, prompting manufacturers to start developing more electric-powered models, Khoury said.
“With a number of countries now saying they will ban petrol and diesel cars by 2030, we will be effectively buying cars that no one else wants,” he added.
The electric vehicle lobby agrees, saying while other developed countries have been developing their own future fuels policies and bringing certainty to investors, Australia has been lagging.
Norway will commence a ban on the sale of passenger vehicles burning fossil fuels in 2025. India, Ireland, Israel, the Netherlands, and Sweden will impose similar bans in 2030, while other countries, including Britain and China, will do so by 2040.
By contrast, the Australian government hasn’t set a target, though the Labor opposition recently announced policies that aim to achieve a 50 percent market share for electric vehicles by 2030.
“Other countries have been bringing more electric vehicles to their markets and rolling out infrastructure, and we haven’t done that. We’re not as ambitious as others,” said Behyad Jafari, chief executive of the Electric Vehicle Council.
It’s not all gloom, though. With the recent launch of Hyundai’s Kona, Australia got its first electric compact SUV last month. The Nissan Leaf will arrive in August, while Fisker is reportedly eyeing the country for a future launch and even an electric “Yewt” is on the way
“We’ve seen a lot of interest from the car industry here wanting to coordinate around standards and attract more investors. The government has also recognised that electric vehicles are happening and there is a value of having electric vehicles in the chain.”
To catch up with the rest of the world, Australia needs to “send a signal that there is support from the industry and government for this transition to occur. We’ll get there,” Jafari added.
The ACE Yewt is set to be Australia’s first electric ute.
Hyundai electric Kona launched in Australia earlier this year.
Extracted from The Motor Report