Chinese EVs make major inroads as Australian market charges ahead

Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers are gearing up for accelerated growth in the Australian market, as Canberra ramps up regulatory measures to smooth the country's transition to greener transportation.

At the recent Everything Electric show in Sydney, which ran for three days starting on March 7, Chinese EV makers took center stage among the diverse range of items on display.

Ian Wilcox, a property valuer from Newcastle in New South Wales state, checked out one of the latest EV offerings on display from Chinese auto giant BYD, saying the vehicle was way ahead of its foreign competitors in many aspects.

"We already have a BYD. …We're really impressed with it, and we've taken some long journeys in it," Wilcox said.

He said his current BYD electric vehicle has many features that are better than its non-Chinese competitors, including a long battery range that enables him and his family to use it on camping trips. "It's amazing, the BYD is probably our favorite vehicle these days," he said.

In 2024, the Australian government passed legislation to introduce a new vehicle efficiency standard to regulate the carbon dioxide emissions of new passenger and light commercial vehicles, implemented on Jan 1 of this year.

The legislation has the stated dual aims of giving consumers more choices of low-emission vehicles and reducing Australia's carbon emissions and reliance on the volatile global oil market.