The Government of Western Australia has committed to working with all sectors of the economy to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 for a prosperous and resilient low carbon future. The Western Australian Climate Policy outlines its action around six key themes including “Lower-carbon transport”.
Globally, electric vehicle (EV) uptake is on the rise. This recent decade has witnessed about 10 million electric cars on the road with a 41% increase of EV registrations in 2020. A further acceleration in uptake is expected as EV prices reach parity with conventional vehicles. Governments around the world are supporting the transition to EVs as a fundamental action in achieving their emission reduction goals.1 The EV market also presents a significant opportunity for industry in Western Australia. With some of the world’s largest reserves for all the critical battery minerals, Western Australia is already capturing economic and employment benefits, and has the skills, infrastructure and standards to become a key player in the global battery value chain.
As part of its commitment to a low-carbon future, the Western Australian Government developed a State Electric Vehicle Strategy for Western Australia in 2020, accompanied by a $21 million investment. This strategy sets out a roadmap to a cleaner, more efficient and sustainable transport future. In addition to EV uptake, the strategy focuses on the development of charging infrastructure; standards, guidelines, and planning approval requirements; and industry development.
The charging infrastructure program outlined in the Electric Vehicle Strategy will deliver Australia’s longest electric vehicle fast charging network. This will provide electric vehicle owners with confidence that they can access fast charging stations along major travel routes, as well as tourism locations across Western Australia. The network will reach north from Perth to Kununurra, south to Esperance, and east to Kalgoorlie. The Strategy also targets a minimum 25 per cent EV acquisition for the government fleet within eligible fleet segments by 2025-26.
Efforts are being made to raise EV awareness so that the introduction of this technology can be accelerated and provide environmental, health and economic benefits within Western Australia. While the State EV Strategy also covers fuel cell EVs (FCEVs), this brochure focuses on battery EVs (BEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) because of their market readiness.
Note 1: IEA 2021, Global EV Outlook 2021
