Volkswagen believes that formidable fuel standards in Australia would have immediately addressed the current supply blockage of EVs caused by a lack of policy leadership, according to The Driven.
In a report published by the Australian Institute, it is asserted that if fuel efficiency regulations had been implemented in 2015, $5.9 billion in petrol expenses might have been saved.
Due to the lack of fuel standards, automotive manufacturers such as VW were either not motivated to enter the Australian market or only brought in limited supply because they focused on markets with existing standards. Notably, VW’s electric vehicles are already selling in various markets such as Europe, including the popular ID.3, ID.4, and ID.5, and an electric Kombi. Most notably, the ID.Buzz is also on its way.
Paul Sansom, head of VW Group in Australia, said, “If we had standards today, we could start bringing in (electric cars) tomorrow,” during the EV Summit in Canberra on Friday. He added, “That’s a game changer. It really is. Not just for Volkswagen but for all car makers. It will open up the door for more affordable EVs, there’s no doubt about that.”
Sansom explained the cause of the shortage of EV supply in Australia in connection to the refusal of various automotive manufacturers to sell their EVs in the country. He specified, “The supply issue is entirely from the lack of policy leadership.”
“This is why it’s so important. I’m sitting here representing probably 180 dealers around the country and with 1000s of customers, and half of them are walking into our showrooms every day asking for an electric vehicle.
“And we can’t satisfy that demand because we haven’t had leadership and policy. So these (fuel emission) targets that we’re talking about are incredibly important, because the conversation I have had with five different headquarters across Europe.
“And they said well, what’s the situation in Australia for the legislation we’ve got to adhere to, are there some potential penalties that we need to be aware of? I say no and they move on to the next market?
“And those other markets are getting all the supply and that’s why our consumers here in Australia have been getting shortchanged with the latest, safest technology, the lowest carbon emissions.”
All things considered, Australia must introduce mandatory fuel efficiency standards to address the current supply blockage of electric vehicles and eventually speed up the country’s transition to EVs. Otherwise, Australia will continue to lag behind.
