Bowen still trickle charging at Parliament as he weighs up fuel emissions standards

Federal climate and energy minister Chris Bowen says he and other EV-driving MPs still have no other option than to “trickle charge” at Parliament House in Canberra, although he hopes a solution is in the works.

Bowen is one of a handful of federal MPs who own or drive electric vehicles, although the entire CommCar fleet that ferries federal parliamentarians around the capital and to and from the airport is about to go electric.

But there are still no charging stations at Parliament House, just a few wall plugs that MPs use to “trickle charge” their EVs – in Bowen’s case a Tesla Model 3 – when they drive to work.

“We’re getting there, I’m told that they are very, they are very close,” Bowen says in the latest episode of the Energy Insiders podcast hosted by The Driven’s sister site RenewEconomy.

“We’re currently still trickle charging those of us who drive EVs in Parliament House, or we end up driving to nearby charging stations. But I think it is important that Parliament House has them for a variety of reasons …. and I’m told that that work is now well advanced.”

Bowen’s more pressing demands are on framing the scale and ambition of the fuel efficiency standards that the government has promised to introduce, and which are considered essential to unlock the supply blockages that have limited the uptake of EVs in Australia.

The number of EVs sold in Australia has jumped significantly in the past few years – almost trebling to a market share of eight per cent just in the last 12 months – but these big numbers have been driven almost entirely by EV specialists such as Tesla and BYD.

Other car companies have limited their supply of EVs to Australia because they send most of their electric stock to markets that oblige them to meet tough fuel efficiency standards. Australia currently is the only western market not to have any, but Bowen promises this will change. The question is by how much and how quickly.

“I’ve said publicly that there’s no point doing a fuel efficiency standard unless it moves the dial, unless it works, unless it’s ambitious, but it’s got to be achievable,” Bowen told the Energy Insiders podcast.

“Welcome to the Climate Change portfolio, everything is going to be ambitious. A key point here (for the fuel emissions standards) is that, we are missing out on supply. It is key for affordability to get more affordable models into the market.

“I’m pleased that we’ve seen a big increase a big, big increase in affordable models coming into Australia, but I’d like to see a lot more.”

Bowen says the standards will be released by the end of the year. “I’ve read all the submissions. They’re all good. (Transport minister) Katherine King and I are working through that the detail.

“We’ll have more to say in the not too distant future. But you know, we are proceeding with fuel efficiency standards, and we’re determined to get the model correct.