Could my next car be an EV?

There's a lot of resistance to buying electric vehicles (EVs) in Australia.

Tesla has sold electric vehicles by the shipload in Australia, despite the local market's apparent reluctance to support these environmentally-friendly machines.

But the number of Teslas sold here is a drop in the ocean in a million-strong market.

For a few years now Tesla has been the sole player of its type in this market, a prestige brand selling electric cars. Despite the lack of concessions and incentives for local buyers of electric cars, Tesla has exploited some consumer demand for its product in Australia. That demand is likely to be boosted rather than diminished as a host of other, upmarket EVs from European prestige brands arrive here.

The Jaguar I-PACE arrived in Australia just before the end of 2018 and is first of these new electric vehicles to challenge Tesla's place in the market. Other electric cars shortly to follow include the Audi e-tron, Mercedes-Benz EQC, BMW iNEXT – to sell alongside its existing i3 model – and the Porsche Taycan. Lesser known brands, such as Infiniti, are also working on an all-electric vehicle.

With the prestige marques blazing the trail, it's only a matter of time before the volume-selling mainstream brands follow suit, with electric vehicles of their own. As sales improve, the cost of building electric vehicles will reduce, making each one more affordable for its manufacturer, as well as the end user.

But the question remains why do we need to go electric? Why are automotive companies – Tesla aside – that are known for their legacy of building cars powered by internal-combustion engines now turning to electric vehicles? Where's the benefit in electric cars?

Climate change is the major factor behind the global automotive industry heading down the electric path. But peak oil has also been a catalyst for the new, eco-friendly technology.

Ever since the oil crisis of 1973, car manufacturers have been acutely aware of the limitations imposed on them by fossil fuels. It became evident the oil industry was supplying a finite resource – prompting concerns about 'peak oil' production and energy security. It's literally true that wars have been fought to secure energy reserves.

But the real problem with internal-combustion technology has only come to light in recent years – global climate change. Engines which emit carbon dioxide – an unavoidable result of a machine burning hydrocarbons to produce power – are contributing to production of a greenhouse gas. On a global scale, the millions of cars in use every day are collectively discharging CO2 at such a rate that some climate scientists anticipate at least a two-degree increase in average annual global temperatures by 2050.

Electric vehicles don't burn hydrocarbons. They don't emit CO2 (or toxic nitrogen oxides either). And they're quieter and more efficient for urban driving conditions. While the jury is still out in regards to the whole-of-life emissions – and whether electric vehicles are actually 'zero-emissions vehicles' properly speaking – the difference between EVs and conventional cars over a time scale measured in years favours the former.

We asked Tim Washington, director of EV charging start-up JET Charge, for his view. Why are sales of EVs on the (slow but steady) rise?

"I think it comes down to this: we're always looking for something better than what we have now," he told carsales.

"With improvements in battery technology and charging efficiency, combined with it being the only option for long term zero emissions transport, electric cars are now being seen as the future of mobility.

"There are practical reasons too. The largest automotive markets in the world, China, EU and California, have all implemented strict vehicle emissions standards, and it's getting stricter.

"Soon, the only way to meet these standards is through battery electric vehicles. Australia will get the benefit of this as well, and we can get it sooner if we also implement similar vehicle emissions laws."

As Washington also observed, without a local manufacturing industry to sustain, there are few if any economic or social reasons to justify the status quo in Australia. If anything, aligning our automotive landscape with other, larger markets will result in cheaper, cleaner cars for the future.

There are problems with going electric, however. First, there's the cost. Fitting each vehicle with a lithium-ion battery pack adds to the cost of the EV. Until industry scales up for large-volume production of EV batteries, EVs will remain out of reach for many consumers.

Another problem is convenience. EVs are intended primarily for city use, where they're close enough to a power outlet for fast charging, but many inner city homes lack off-street parking or powered-up garages. But the fact is that many homes and increasing numbers of medium-density townhouses and apartments in newer suburbs do provide the means of convenient recharging.

The argument that secure recharging infrastructure is not available to all households is no reason for withholding sustainable private transport from other households. According to EV experts, Australia is actually better equipped for household infrastructure in our major cities than many nations further down the track.

Range is another problem for consumers who might otherwise prefer an EV over a conventional vehicle. Not everyone will be satisfied with a car that can only travel 50km or so from one battery charge to the next. Only plug-in hybrids can match or better the range of a conventional vehicle without being fettered by hours of recharging. And while it's a useful stop-gap, plug-in technology is not a long-term solution. Scientists around the world are working furiously to improve battery technology, for higher energy density, longer range and less time spent hooked up to an electric charger.

An alternative to the long-awaited high-performance battery is a network of fast chargers around the nation. Companies like Washington's are making rapid progress to bring this conception to reality in Australia. JET Charge is one of the companies behind Chargefox, a brand for a network of EV charging stations being established around the country. Each station will supply renewable energy from the sun and the company plans to have 21 sites operating throughout Australia by early 2020. Three will be located in Western Australia, but the other 18 will be spaced no more than 200km apart.

Probably the biggest hurdle for the electrification of private transport is Australia's dependency on coal, and specifically brown coal in Victoria. But that is a question of perception as much as reality. Even an electric motor drawing power from brown coal produces fewer CO2 particles than an internal-combustion engine running on petrol that has been refined using power also generated from brown coal.

While the message is slow to get out, Australia is increasingly reliant on renewable sources for generation of electricity. As of 2016, sustainable electricity generation accounted for 16 per cent of all power generation in Australia, with experts predicting that 'green' power may supply as much as 50 per cent of Australia's power needs by the middle of the next decade.

Some optimists are suggesting 100 per cent (including hydro-electric power) is not only possible, but entirely likely. The costs of sustainable electricity infrastructure are coming down, making it economically expedient to invest in that technology, rather than traditional (fossil fuel) means of power generation.

So with the cost of EVs coming down, practicality improving and consumers gradually putting aside their misgivings, there's a probability of better than 50 per cent an EV could be on the average buyer's shopping list by 2025.