SYDNEY, (Reuters) – Australia’s government said on Friday it plans to introduce new regulations targeting vehicle carbon emissions to boost the uptake of electric cars, as it looks to catch up with other developed economies.
Just 2% of cars sold in Australia are electric compared with 15% in Britain and 17% in Europe, and the country risked becoming a dumping ground for vehicles that can’t be sold elsewhere, Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said.Apart from Russia, Australia is the only OECD country to either not have or be developing fuel efficiency standards, which encourage manufacturers to supply more electric and no-emission vehicles, he said.
“To me, this is ultimately about choice. And policy settings are denying Australians real choice of good, affordable, no emissions cars,” Bowen told an electric vehicle summit in Canberra.
The government will release a discussion paper for consultation in September, with a focus on increasing EV uptake, improving affordability, and looking at options for fuel efficiency standards.urrently, just eight EV models priced under A$60,000 ($41,450) are available to choose from in Australia, compared with 26 in Britain, Bowen said.
“Australia risks becoming a dumping ground for older technology which can’t be sold in other markets,” he said.
