Tasmanian drivers will soon have easy access to a range of new and used electric vehicles with the launch of a new partnership between Australian car subscription service, Carbar, and local utility Aurora Energy.
The pay-as-you-go electric car package will offer a range of electric vehicles for a weekly subscription fee, including the Kia Niro, Hyundai Kona, MG ZS EV, Nissan Leaf and – coming in early 2022 – Tesla Model 3.
According to Carbar’s usual model, customers pay an upfront fee to cover delivery and other initial costs and then a weekly amount that covers pretty much all of the costs of owning and running a car, including rego, insurance, maintenance, roadside assist, tyres and batteries.
For the Tassie offer, the weekly subscription prices currently range from $279 per week (for the 2020 Nissan Leaf) to $389 pw for the Kia e-Niro.
The offer, which requires no lock-in contracts, is open to all-comers – that is, you don’t have to be a customer of Aurora Energy, but apparently there are some extra perks that will be offered exclusively to customers of the state-owned retailer.
The first of these exclusive deals is a launch offer to the first 20 Aurora Energy customers who sign up to Carbar, that will give cut the weekly cost of the MG ZS EV from $296 per week to $220 per week for the first 3 months – a total discount of $988.
All subscriptions also qualify for Carbar’s loyalty program, which reduces the weekly cost of subscribed vehicles every year through and offers a 50% discount a year if customers want to either swap vehicles or subscribe to an additional car.
The deal is well timed, both for Tasmania and Carbar, following the February launch of a fast charging network that installed 12 50kW charging stations across the state. The state also has two ultra-rapid charging stations offering charging rates of up to 350kW, and in May installed Australia’s first V3 Tesla Supercharger at the port city of Devonport.
Carbar’s arrival in the island state addresses the missing piece of the puzzle to drive EV uptake in the state – the actual cars. As Giles Parkinson wrote here in March, for a destination that is shaping up as perfect for an electric driving holiday, there remains shortage of EVs available for purchase or hire.
“There’s an incredible demand for EVs across Australia, and we believe this is especially the case in Tasmania, which has been a pioneer in Australia’s clean energy sector,” said Carbar founder and CEO Des Hang.
“In addition to being an affordable means of getting behind the wheel of an EV, this launch is an ideal opportunity for many Tasmanians to try their first car subscription.
“With EV technology and innovation moving at a pace, subscriptions are ideal for those who always want to be behind the wheel of a car at the cutting edge of this trend,” Hang added.
“There’s no unexpected running costs and you can cancel your car at any time; we believe this level of flexibility and affordability really resonates with the Tasmanian community.”
Aurora Energy CEO Rebecca Kardos said the energy retailer also hoped the partnership would act as a catalyst for the uptake and growth of sustainable transport in the majority hydro-powered state, which is currently pitching for a 200% renewable electricity supply.
“We’re focussed on helping our customers become more sustainable, whether that’s through being more energy efficient in the home or through greater access to low emissions transport,” Kardos said.
“Our partnership with carbar will do exactly that and help capitalise on Tasmania’s renewable energy advantage as we push towards becoming a carbon neutral economy.”
Extracted from The Driven