ACT wins

The ACT has the largest portion of the EV market share, with 9.7 per cent, but NSW and Victoria have made significant increases in the area.

For example, Victoria wants to make half of all light vehicle sales zero emission cars by 2030. NSW has made significant investments in the area, including removing stamp duty from EVs under $78,000 and from all other EVs and plug-in hybrids from July 1, 2027.

Even the Northern Territory almost doubled market share between 2021 and 2022, although off a lower base.

Battery or hybrid

The report notes that of the 83,000 EVs on the road, the majority are battery electric vehicles (BEVs) versus 21 per cent plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).

Jafari said Australia would struggle to meet its national emissions targets unless more was done.

“To achieve the federal government’s emission target, we’ll need a near fully zero-emission vehicle fleet by 2050. To stay on track, that means reaching 1 million EVs by 2027 and around 3 million by 2030.” he said. “We can definitely hit these goals, but not without an ambitious fuel efficiency standard to expand the supply of EVs to Australia. The federal government should introduce this standard this year as a matter of urgency.

“Australians are early adaptors by nature, we care about our environment and we don’t want to rely on foreign oil. There is no reason for us to continue to lag the world on EV take-up.”

The federal government is seeking stakeholder views on fuel efficiency standards, but noted earlier consultation had supported them.

A spokeswoman for Transport Minister Catherine King said if the government proceeds, additional detailed consultation and analysis would be undertaken.

Australia lags other countries

Globally, EV uptake is booming. The International Energy Agency said there were 16.5 million EVs on the road in 2021, a tripling in just three years.

Britain, Japan, France and Germany have pledged to ban sales of combustion engines between 2025 and 2030. While Norway became the first country where EV sales outstripped petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicle sales combined in 2020.

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China has 7.8 million EVs on the road, while Europe has 5.5 million and the US has 2 million. China also has the EV battery value chain. It’s where almost all (97 per cent) of Australia’s lithium is processed, and it makes three-quarters of the world’s battery cells.

Jafari said it was important to remember other countries had bigger populations than ours. But we also have a chance to become a world leader given Australia’s critical minerals, which are used to make EV batteries. It is already the world’s top producer of lithium, and among the biggest producers of nickel, cobalt, manganese ore and rare earths.

The International Energy Agency estimates demand for EV batteries will grow more than tenfold this decade, stretching production capacity and supply of materials that go into them.

University of Sydney School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Professor Yuan Chen said with increased investment in Australian charging infrastructure, sales would continue to increase.

The EVC report notes the number of public chargers increased from about 3400 in 2021 to almost 4950 last year, while fast chargers were up from 231 to 365.

Chen said Australia’s environment made it an ideal EV market.

“Our weather conditions are perfect for EVs – temperatures across Australia are in the moderate range,” he said. “In Norway, temperatures go down to minus 30 degrees, but we don’t have that issue.”

He added that Australia’s renewable energy markets would also allow cars to be charged without relying on electricity from fossil fuel industries, and the country had a unique opportunity to create an EV industry. “It will take years,” he said.

What’s the most popular brand

There are more than 70 models available to consumers, with about 38 BEVs and 32 PHEVs. While the below graphic shows the top 20 models from last year, some of them weren’t on the market the entire year.

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Looking ahead, electric sports cars, SUVs, vans and a full fleet of battery-powered hatchbacks are expected to rev into Australia this year. Toyota, Fiat, Subaru and Ford are poised to launch electric vehicles in the country for the first time.

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