EVs cheap to refuel but not to own

A new study has found the cost of fuelling an EV is half that of an equivalent internal combustion vehicle in Australia.

But the devil’s in the detail and high purchase costs offset most – if not all – of the savings.

The data comes courtesy of Compare the Market Australia, which concluded a mainstream EV like the Hyundai Kona Electric Elite on average costs $4.50 per 100km to run, compared to $9.79 for the equivalent petrol-only Kona, marking a 54 per cent saving per kilometre in favour of the zero-emission vehicle.

Sticking with the Kona case study, Compare the Market’s data cites an average fill-up price of $78.89 for a petrol variant, while the corresponding Electric costs an average of $13.72 for a full charge.

This equates to an average saving of $65.17 per fuel-up for EV owners.

Australia’s ranking of 23rd for most-expensive EV charging puts it almost right in the middle of the 50-country sample group, with Denmark and Italy tying for first place ($34.34 per charge), followed by Germany ($33.05) and Belgium ($31.10) in second and third respectively.

At the other end of the scale, Argentina, Malaysia and India were found to be the cheapest countries per charge, averaging just $2.12, $2.95 and $4.36 respectively.

But what about savings? Where do the reduced running costs of electric vehicles make the most sense and or biggest impact?

The answer is Iceland, Norway and Switzerland in that order, with the two Scandi countries offering EV drivers savings of more than $150 per fill up compared to a comparable petrol car on account of their exorbitant fuel prices and low charging costs.

Switzerland, meantime, offered a saving of $139.36 per fill-up.

“Compared to the other nations we looked at, Australia performs barely above average when it comes to EV charging prices,” Compare the Market said in its conclusion.

“In Australia, it costs EV owners AU$4.50 worth of electricity per 100km of driving, making it the 28th cheapest overall. From empty, it would cost AU$13.72 to completely charge the 39.2kWh battery of the Hyundai Kona Electric.

“On the other hand, Australia boasts decently low fuel prices, coming in ninth cheapest on our list at just AU$79.89 to fill a 50L tank – notably better than the global average of $111.15.

“Overall, the high electricity price and lower petrol price creates comparably little incentive to go electric compared to the other nations on our list – at least as far as refuelling/recharging prices are concerned.”

The study found those incentives are dampened further by the more than $22,000 purchase price gulf – before federal and state government rebates – between the (now defunct) Kona Elite and Kona Electric Elite.

Compare the Market head of energy Meredith O’Brien stipulated, however, that some local energy providers are offering special EV rates to charge overnight (during off peak times) to help drive down the cost of running an EV, with things helped further by the presence of solar panels and/or home battery systems.

“These rates can be significantly lower than normal peak rates for electricity,” she said.

Almost 50,000 electric vehicles have been delivered to local consumers July year-to-date – a 385.4 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.