The Australian Government has used Fringe Benefits Tax exemptions to stimulate the sales of zero and low emission vehicles (ZLEV). Potential tax exemptions can apply to battery electric vehicles (BEV), hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV), or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV).
This initiative has worked well, with around 24 per cent of all new vehicles sold this year having some form of electrification. However, recent industry vehicle sales figures from FCAI show slowing pure BEV sales in June this year to 8.0 per cent, against 8.8 per cent of new car sales in June last year.
Conversely, PHEV sales have grown at an extraordinary rate, including a 149 per cent increase in June sales against June last year, and nearly 130 per cent up in the first six months of the year, compared to last year.
Yes, there are more PHEV models in the market this year and a growing understanding of the role PHEV play for drivers unsure about moving straight to BEV. It’s telling that the FBT exemptions that apply to PHEV play a big role in transitioning drivers out of conventional internal combustion engine vehicles.
The conundrum is, the current government FBT exemption policy for PHEV will not apply to new PHEV purchased after 1 April 2025. This is bad news for the fleet transition and something the government should extend.
One argument against PHEV is their owners may never plug them in, meaning a lesser role in CO2 reductions.
We’ve seen nothing to suggest motorists run their PHEV purely on petrol or diesel, but it’s ludicrous to think someone buys a vehicle with two energy drive options but doesn’t plug it in.
Latest news
PHEV Drivers – Leve the plug in
The Australian Government has used Fringe Benefits Tax exemptions to stimulate the sales of zero [...]
Jul
Apprentice mentoring – It works.
Group apprenticeship training is an Australian invention designed to help support apprentices in trade training. [...]
Jul
Skilled labour – Keeping the state moving
It’s no secret Tasmanian businesses find it difficult to attract labour. We all know the [...]
Jun