Australia’s request for fuel efficiency standards

The Electric Vehicle Council has renewed its call for the federal government to introduce mandatory fuel economy standards in Australia, given their popularity in New Zealand.

Electric vehicles’ market share in New Zealand’s new car sales has surged from 4% to 20% in recent months, and figures show that around 62% of New Zealanders believe the standard is good policy for the country. believe.

Introducing the standard in Australia means that on average new cars sold by automakers must not exceed the emissions cap.

They have to pay penalties if they exceed set carbon emission targets.

Experts say this could reduce emissions during transportation, give customers more choice and reduce the cost of petrol pumps.

EVC believes the biggest barrier to the electrification of transport is the low supply of EV models due to the lack of both mandatory fuel efficiency standards and state purchasing incentives.

Last year, the Commonwealth’s landmark climate change bill passed the Senate, pledging Australia to meet its 43% emissions reduction and net-zero emissions targets by 2050.

EVC chief executive Behyad Jafari said fuel efficiency standards have been long overdue and delaying them would reduce the nation’s ability to meet emissions targets.

“Australia is one of the last developed countries on the planet not to have introduced fuel efficiency standards…if we don’t speed up the process today, Australia’s ability to meet emissions reduction targets from transport will fall out of reach. It puts the burden on farmers and manufacturers,” said Jafari.