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Electric vehicle (EV) sales are continuing to climb in South Australia, according to the Australian Automobile Association (AAA) EV index launched today.
The EV Index shows 1,426 new electric vehicles were sold in South Australia last year, growing to 3.3 per cent of the State’s new light vehicle sales by the last quarter of 2022 – up from 1.73 per cent in the first quarter of 2022.
The new data comes following the launch of the beginning of the rollout of the state’s first border-to-border electric vehicle charging network last week – RAA Charge.
The first 12 sites of the RAA Charge network are now available for use for the thousands of EV drivers in South Australia, currently concentrated in the CBD and Adelaide Hills and South East region.
Chief Executive Officer Nick Reade said RAA was ensuring the charging infrastructure was in place to support the uptake of EVs in South Australia.
“The RAA Charge network will encompass 140 sites across the state once complete – meaning EV drivers can travel anywhere in South Australia,” Mr Reade said.
“They’ll be able to drive from Bordertown in the South East to the Border Village on the far west coast and everywhere in between.
“Last week we launched the first 12 AC Fast charging sites and the network will continue to roll out steadily from here.
“RAA Charge is available to all EV drivers and will help put an end to EV range anxiety, with all 140 sites within driving range of a typical EV.
“We’re seeing strong growth in the number of members choosing to drive an EV and we’re supporting them by building the charging infrastructure around the state to power them.
“We’ve also upskilled our roadside patrols so we can offer an equivalent level of service as we do for the traditional petrol and diesel vehicles.
“We’re proud to support our members no matter what vehicle they choose to drive – petrol diesel, hybrid or electric.”
The EV Index also showed the five most popular makes of EVs in South Australia were Tesla, BYD, MG, Volvo and Polestar.
“There are more and more makes and models of EVs coming onto the market giving consumers more choice,” Mr Reade said.
“Industry is telling us that the cost of producing an EV is continuing to drop which means we should see the retail price of EVs come down too – making them more affordable.”
To view the EV Index, visit: evindex.au