Rebates and incentives needed as misinformation undermines shift to EVs

Rebates and incentives to help more drivers slip behind the wheel of an electric vehicle are required to give Australia a chance of meeting its 2050 net-zero target, a report has found.

The warning comes as the pace of electric vehicle sales slowed in Australia, the Electric Vehicle Council’s market report revealed on Monday, even though motorists were expected to buy more than 110,000 cars in 2024.

It came after four states “prematurely” removed electric car rebates, the study said, and as the slow economy and misinformation about the low-emission vehicles made some consumers delay purchases.

The State of Electric Vehicles 2024 report found Australians bought more than 85,000 battery-powered cars by the end of September 2024, representing 9.53 per cent of all new vehicles sold.

Electric car purchases grew 13 per cent, the study showed, and the number of electric and plug-in hybrid models available in Australia jumped 50 per cent.

Despite the growth, the figures represented a slowdown from a record-breaking 2023, Electric Vehicle Council chief scientist Dr Jake Whitehead said, and a more “gradual” adoption by motorists.

“By any measure, there are more EVs on our roads today that ever before and that is set to grow,” he said.

“The pace of that growth, however, will depend on the level of support from governments and industry.”

Australia needed electric vehicles to make up more than half of all new cars sold by 2030 to meet its net-zero goal, the report found, and governments should aim to meet an interim target of one million EVs on roads by 2027.

The early removal of electric car purchase incentives in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia had made those targets more challenging to reach as financial assistance should remain in place until “at least 30 per cent EV sales are achieved nationally”, it said.

Reintroducing EV rebates and targeting second-hand purchases could make a significant difference in the market, Electric Vehicle Council legal, policy and advocacy head Aman Gaur said.

“Government should come back to the table and consider reintroducing or expanding reasonable purchase incentives to drive EV adoption to a critical mass,” he said.

“We also need stronger efforts from government, industry and other organisations to combat misinformation about EVs, which undermines public support and hinders the transition.”

Strategies to boost EV uptake in Australia could also include incentives to take older petrol vehicles off the roads and a road user charge, Australian Electric Vehicle Association national president Chris Jones said.

Price cuts for some electric vehicles this year had boosted sales, he said, but improvements in economic conditions and cuts to the interest rate would also make a difference.

“When we start to see EVs over the 10 per cent of new vehicles then I’ll feel confident it’s back on track,” he told AAP.

In positive news, the study found fast and ultra-fast vehicle charging locations had almost doubled in 2024.