Who is leading the electric car charge in Australia? Electric Vehicle Council report reveals which states are forging ahead and which are lagging behind in the EV state of origin | Analysis

The Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) has released its State Of EVs report for 2024 – its annual assessment of Australia's EV transition, which looks at the performance of federal, state and territory governments.

The 72-page report breaks down a multitude of factors informing the transition, with a key focus on EV market uptake, government policy and infrastructure investment over the previous 12 months.

Handy for us, then, that the EVC has quantified each jurisdiction's performance for 2024, based on seven key metrics, with a ranking out of 10.

So, how are we tracking?

Despite Australia's record year of EV sales, in which about 70,000 battery-electric vehicles were sold between the EVC's reporting period of September 2023 to 2024, we still remain well off the pace of the global market, with only about 7.5 per cent of new car sales being battery-electric cars, compared to a global average of closer to 15 per cent.

One key factor the EVC pointed out was a lack of EV incentives across Australia's three most populous states. As of December 2024, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland (as well as South Australia) have ceased direct financial incentives for car buyers purchasing an EV.

Given the upfront cost of an EV remains considerably dearer than its petrol or diesel counterparts, many buyers are still opting for cars with an internal combustion engine or switching to hybrids as an intermediary technology instead, which has somewhat placated the demand for EVs post-Covid.

Take Australia's cheapest car, the Kia Picanto, which is priced at $18,290, before on-road costs, compared to $35,990, drive-away, for Australia's cheapest EV, the GWM Ora.

The EVC's Head of Legal, Policy and Advocacy Aman Guar said reinstating incentives is integral to bringing down EV costs and encouraging greater uptake.

“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," he said.

2024 Tesla Model 3 Performance (Image: Tom White)

According to the EVC, incentives should remain until electric cars make up 30 per cent of new car sales.

The report also outlined challenges in the pollution-heavy trucking and transport sector, with not a single jurisdiction receiving a ranking above the six out of 10 which went to NSW.

Even more than passenger vehicles, electric trucks remain considerably more expansive than their diesel counterparts given they require much larger battery packs.

There are also concerns around range, with public charging stations primarily concentrated in urban areas as opposed to remote locations where a truck may need to recharge on a long-distance journey.

However, there were some silver linings, with Australia's most populous state, NSW, leading the way on overall rankings ahead of the ACT and federal government, despite its lack of financial incentives.

NSW's 294 public charging stations, which is the most of any jurisdiction in Australia (a high proportion of which are fast and ultra-fast charging stations) saw it receive full marks for energy infrastructure.

Even though Victoria isn't too far behind in the number of total charging stations (with 268), the EVC marked it harder for having fewer ultra-fast charging stations, a lack of workplace chargers and a low capacity to retrofit chargers to older buildings.

"The expansion of our national charging network, with over 1000 fast and ultra-fast locations, is driving EV sales growth.

2024 Kia EV9 GT-Line

"To maintain this momentum, governments must keep investing in public charging, including kerbside options, and explore solutions for Australians without off-street parking," Mr Guar said.

The ACT had the highest percentage of new car sales afforded to electric vehicles (including plug-in hybrids), with approximately 25 per cent. The lowest was less than five per cent for the Northern Territory, which also had the lowest number of public chargers.

Irrespective of the mixed results, the EVC viewed the general ambitions of each jurisdiction strongly, with each setting relatively clear targets backed by policy that aligned with Australia's overall climate change goals.

The federal government's New Vehicle Emissions Standards (NVES), for example, which legislates the level of carbon that is allowed to be emitted per kilometre travelled in petrol and diesel vehicles, were spruiked as making the last 18 months "one of the most significant periods in Australia's EV transition".

That said, ambitions remain one thing while action remains another.

Chief Scientist at the EVC, Dr Jake Whitehead, said it was integral that support for the EV transition continued.

"This year’s gradual growth in EV sales and market share builds on the momentum of a blockbuster 2023, further driving the upward trend in BEV and PHEV adoption.

“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,” Dr Whitehead said.

2024 State-by-State Assessment of EV transition

Source: Electric Vehicle Council State of EVs report 2024