Electric vehicle sales have reached new heights in Australia, representing almost one in every 10 vehicles bought in 2024, with popularity expected to almost double over the next two years.
The latest annual state of EVs report, released by the Electric Vehicle Council, noted a 150% increase in sales compared with 2022, to the current sales share of 9.5% of new light vehicle sales – with about 110,000 estimated to have been sold in 2024.
The EV Council identifies an influx of new and cheaper models into the market – the current 122 available represents 50% more choice than in 2023 – as helping to spur the uptake.
Additionally, a near doubling of the number of fast and ultra-fast charging locations over the past year may have boosted confidence among consumers anxious about the range EVs could drive before needing to be recharged.
Despite reaching a new annual record, the growth of EV sales slowed throughout 2024. The 9.5% market share figure covers both pure battery EVs as well as the less-popular plug-in hybrid vehicles.
Crucially, the plug-in vehicle types still lag behind the sales of traditional hybrid vehicles – which recharge from regenerative braking and only run on their batteries at slower speeds before its combustion engine kicks in – which surged in sales to 16.7% market share in the third quarter of 2024 in part due to tax concessions and the issue of range anxiety.
The Tesla Model Y was the most popular new electric vehicle in Australia in 2024, representing 16,697 – or 20% of all EV sales. This was closely followed by the Tesla Model 3, with 14,053 sales, and Chinese manufacturer BYD’s Seal, with 5,308.
Policies towards EVs vary dramatically at the state and territory level, with the council rating each jurisdiction’s settings towards uptake. Several states have wound back purchase incentives for EVs recently.
New South Wales received a grading of 9/10 for its policies, followed by the Australian Capital Territory with 8/10, Western Australia with 7/10, Queensland and Victoria at 6/10, South Australia and Tasmania at 5/10 and the Northern Territory at 4/10.
These ratings are somewhat reflected in the sales figures. EVs were 9.6% and 9.5% of new cars sold in Queensland and NSW respectively, and just 4% in the NT.
However, the ACT continues to lead the country on EV sales, with 25.1% of new sales in September. The territory has an emissions-based registration system for all vehicles, a stamp duty discount, and a zero-interest loan scheme.
The EV council predicts the policy that will have the greatest impact in terms of uptake will be at a federal level, with the Albanese government’s incoming new vehicle efficiency standard.
Scheduled to come into effect from 2025, the standard will place a cap on the emissions from new cars to incentivise carmakers to supply low- and zero-emissions vehicles as part of their overall fleet in the Australian market. The cap will be lowered over time.
As a result of policies including the efficiency standard – which is predicted to lower the cost of entry for EVs that will be cheaper to run at a time when petrol for conventional cars is increasingly costly – the Council predicts EV sales will reach at least 15% to 19% of all new vehicles sold by 2026.
EV sales in Australia are still well behind comparable countries. While the global average in 2024 is about 20% of new sales, the figure has been at about 25% in the United Kingdom this year, just shy of 40% in China, and about 90% in Norway, according to the EV Council.
Dr Jake Whitehead, the Electric Vehicle Council’s chief scientist, said “by any measure, there are more EVs on our roads today than ever before and that is set to grow”.
“The pace of this growth, however, will depend on the level of support from governments and industry,” he said.
Aman Gaur, the Council’s head of legal, policy and advocacy, said Australia “still faces a long road to match the EV adoption rates of other developed nations”.
“And to meet climate targets we need more than 50% of new car sales to be EVs by 2030.”
Gaur said governments “should come back to the table and consider reintroducing and expanding reasonable purchase incentives to drive EV adoption to a critical mass, including support to purchase second-hand EVs”.
“We also need stronger efforts from government, industry and other organisations to combat misinformation about EVs, which undermines public support and hinders the transition,” he said.
