By Oliver Lees
The Macedon Ranges Sustainability Group (MRSG) has welcomed the federal government’s new commitment to electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure, but believes there are still “big holes” in the strategy that could prevent a meaningful transition to the technology.
Earlier this week Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the Future Fuels Strategy, which details a plan to partner with the private sector to fund 50,000 charging stations in Australian homes.
A total of $250 million will be pushed into the scheme and create 2600 jobs over three years, according to government estimates.
The government’s support for electric vehicle infrastructure marks a significant departure from its stance on the technology in 2019.
At the time Mr Morrison declared the Labor party’s pursuit of a plan for half of all new cars to be electric by 2030 as a “war on the weekend”.
MRSG president David Gormley-O’Brien said the Future Fuels Strategy was a positive step, but still falls short of global standards.
“I’m quite happy with the emphasis on providing infrastructure, charging for EVs as well as refueling infrastructure for hydrogen and the emphasis on providing incentives for commercial fleets,” Dr Gormley-O’Brien said.
“But there are a couple big holes in my view.
“One of them is the assumption that by the middle of this decade there will be price parity between EVs and cars, that simply won’t happen at the current rate.”
Dr Gormley-O’Brien said the government should provide rebates or subsidies to make EVs more affordable, similar to the current rebate scheme applied to solar panel installation.
Earlier this year Macedon Ranges council completed installation of two electric vehicle charging stations in Woodend and Kyneton.
According to the council’s updated Environment Strategy, council is seeking to “continue to install public electric vehicle charging stations across the shire, prioritising the eastern part of the shire”.
Hume council acting director of sustainable infrastructure and services Bernadette Thomas said council had included charging stations in the draft designs for their multi-storey car parks in Sunbury and Broadmeadows.
Dr Gormley-O’Brien said the uptake in charging stations should remove ‘range anxiety’ for those considering purchasing an EV.
