AEVA PRESS RELEASE 29th May 2017 www.aeva.asn.au

The Australian Electric Vehicle Association highlights massive productivity opportunity in shift away from petrol.

All new passenger vehicles sold in Australia to be plug-in electric by 2025, and a per-kilometre levy to cover road infrastructure; two simple strategies proposed by the Australian Electric Vehicle Association (AEVA) for reducing transport emissions and improving our terms of trade. In its submission to the Federal Government’s Vehicle Emissions Standards Draft Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) the AEVA highlights the considerable cost savings to the national terms of trade by switching our passenger vehicle fleet to electric.

Following on from its earlier submission to the Productivity Commission which identified transport fuel costs savings of $2.2 billion per year, the AEVA has identified a further potential boost to the Australian economy in the order of $8 billion dollars a year, with cost savings equal to that within the energy sector. In its submission to the Vehicle Emissions Standards RIS, the AEVA presents yet more compelling evidence that transitioning towards electric vehicles (EVs) yields massive economic, environmental, health and energy security benefits. A further $12 billion in annual fuel savings are projected over and above the Governments own estimates based on improving vehicle fuel efficiency alone.

The AEVA takes this push for more fuel-efficient vehicles further; why settle for a marginal improvement in fuel efficiency when you can leap forward to the most efficient transport technology – electric propulsion.

“The AEVA has calculated that the greater the proportion of ultra-low and zero emission vehicles (primarily electric powered vehicles) the greater the benefits to the populace and the economy. We also note that EVs could now be a cost neutral alternative to internal combustion engines (ICE)”

Under the Federal Government’s proposal to tighten vehicle emission standards, estimated fuel cost savings to the economy were placed somewhere between $10.8 and $27.5 billion (2020-2040); less so if fuel quality is also implemented. But by replacing just 1 million ICE cars with EVs, national fuel costs would be reduced by up to $350 million annually, on top of that achieved by the most stringent fuel standards proposed in the RIS.

Refreshing the vehicle fleet with EVs will result reduced takings from the current fuel excise, which currently generates about $12 billion a year for road infrastructure projects. The AEVA suggests implementing a 1 cent per kilometre levy for all new vehicles; creating an incentive to go electric, and a disincentive to continue on with petrol and diesel.

Moreover, reductions in harmful emissions could yield a further $5 to $9 million annually in negated health costs, while the re-purposing of used batteries from a fleet of 1 million EVs for home energy storage could save up to $5 billion in capital costs, and provide between 2,000-3,000 MW of grid support, all the while reducing the discounted cost of household solar.

The AEVA’s submission can be found on the DIRD website: https://infrastructure.gov.au/roads/environment/forum/submissions-ris.aspx

Comparison of annual household petrol costs with EVs, based on an average fuel economy of 8l/100 km and EV efficiency of 15kWh/100 km.

Annual savings ($ Billion) over 5 years based on wholesale petrol at $1.30/l versus electricity at $0.18 c/kWh. Savings from EVs far exceed even the most stringent new vehicle emission and fuel economy standards proposed in the RIS document.

Edward Booth, AEVA National President) and Dr Christopher Jones, AEVA National Secretary

For enquiries and more information, please email or . Please forward all postal correspondence to AEVA – PO Box 5285 Clayton, Victoria 3168.

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