The war in the Middle East appears to have reignited interest in electric vehicles, or hybrid options that do not require petrol or diesel. The electric vehicle council says car dealers are fielding a rising number of inquiries about their EV options.
So, could Australia be nearing a “tipping point” when the take-up of EVs heads towards mass public adoption? Founder and editor-in-chief of The Driven & Renew Economy, Giles Parkinson says the anecdotal evidence suggests there’s going to be a big jump in EV sales. “In fact, it could be a record month for EV sales in Australia and it will certainly be a record share of the market,” he says.
With more choice from EV brands from China, and what he’s described as previously ‘overblown’ range anxiety waning, Giles Parkinson says people are just walking into EV showrooms and buying a perfectly decent electric SUV for $35,000, $37,000 drive away or even less, which you couldn’t do that one or two years ago.
“One of the funny things is that, people’s hesitancy towards EVs was largely dominated by range anxiety and charger anxiety…it was very much overblown,” he says. “Now I think we’ve seen the same thing with, ironically, fossil fuels, some petrol and diesel drivers are cancelling holiday trips because they don’t know that the bowser is going to be open and they’re also looking at the costs of that trip now, which have inflated about 50 per cent.”
