The Electric Vehicle Council say that more than 100 companies and organisations have united in a push to get one million electric cars on Australian roads by 2027.
The alliance has come together from sectors including transport, retail, agriculture, health, technology, insurance, environment, and research to support the federal government’s development of a National Electric Vehicle Strategy.
The alliance is calling for that strategy to: include a strong fuel efficiency standard consistent with the US, NZ and Europe; boost investment in EV manufacturing through a collaborative EV industry development plan; facilitate the roll-out of a co-ordinated charging network, with a focus on the regions and the suburbs; support more electric buses, trucks, and other commercial vehicles for Australian business; create economic modelling that factors in the many benefits of EVs, including less pollution, improved public health, and better fuel security, and; set a goal to have one million EVs on Australian roads by 2027.
EV policy ready to accelerate
Electric Vehicle Council chief executive Behyad Jafari says that after years of inaction from Canberra, Australian EV policy is now ready to accelerate and business wants to ensure we don’t miss the moment.
‘This new federal government is off to a strong start and a National EV Strategy announced in the first months of its tenure is an excellent development. But after a long period of policy stagnation we now need a strategy that contains robust measures.
‘We know Australians want the transition to electric vehicles to speed up. Our most recent data shows a 65 per cent leap in EV sales over the past year. But that still leaves Australia with a lot of opportunity to fill, by catching up to the rest of the world.
Absence of fuel efficiency standard
‘The absence of a fuel efficiency standard is largely to blame as manufacturers overlook our nation in favour of others who have more ambitious plans. We can fix that swiftly and these hundred organisations from across Australian industry and society are making it clear they want that to happen.
Mr Jafari says Australian business understands that transport should be doing its share of heavy lifting on the path to net zero. ‘If we don’t put a big dent in our transport emissions, by getting more EVs on the roads, it will put unsustainable pressure on other sectors like farming, manufacturing, construction, mining and energy.
‘If we get this EV Strategy right, the opportunities are enormous. We could be employing tens of thousands of Australians building batteries, chargers, cars, buses, and trucks. We’ll be cutting pollution from transport and doing our fair share to combat climate change. And we’ll be reducing our reliance on foreign oil by using Australian energy to move.’
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