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Future Fuels and Vehicles Strategy fails to capitalise on electrification opportunities

The Clean Energy Council says that the Australian Government's new Future Fuels and Vehicles Strategy squanders another opportunity to drive down emissions and save households money.

"The electrification of transport is one of the most efficient strategies for decarbonising our economy, and yet the government has once again decided to take the slow lane by refusing to adopt policies that incentivise uptake," said Clean Energy Council Chief Executive, Kane Thornton.

"The Federal Government purports to support choice for Australian motorists, but in fact its strategy stifles choice by making it very challenging for Australia to attract a wide selection of battery electric vehicles (EVs) to the market.

"EVs are in high demand and we are competing with international markets to attract supply to the Australian market. Without explicit policies to drive consumer uptake, we will continue to receive yesterday's technologies."

Earlier today, the Clean Energy Council announced that 3 million homes and small businesses across Australia now have rooftop solar PV installed – the highest per capita rate of rooftop solar in the world.

On average, more than 41 solar systems are being installed every hour across Australia, equating to one panel every 44 seconds – an obvious advantage in electrification and one that should be exploited.

"Australia can and should be leveraging our solar homes to charge our cars, not only dramatically reduce emissions but also slashing thousands of dollars in fuel costs for households," said Thornton.

The recent Castles and Carsreport by Rewiring Australia found that if Australia charged its electric vehicles with rooftop solar and home batteries, it could see savings of around 67 per cent in fuel costs by 2030.

"It's staggering that the Australian Government has seen fit to release this strategy to coincide with COP26, given that the purpose of the gathering was for countries to raise their ambition over the coming decade. Apart from the investment in charging infrastructure, this strategy reflects little more than the continuation of the status quo."

ENDS

For more information or to arrange an interview, contact:

Jane Aubrey
Clean Energy Council Media Manager
[email protected]
+61 409 470 683