The Australian federal government has opened a one-month public consultation on its plan to introduce a fuel efficiency standard for passenger and light commercial vehicles on 1 January 2025, setting an average CO2 target (gCO2/km) to manufacturers for the range of vehicles they produce, which will be lowered over time. Three options are proposed: a “slow start” option, aiming to reach US standard’s rate of decline over five years with no catch-up, a middle-ground trajectory, preferred by the government, which aims to catch-up with the US target by 2028 (i.e. 68 gCO2/km for passengers vehicles), and a fast option bringing US targets for 2029-2031 in 2028 and 2029. A scheme will allow manufacturers that exceed their emissions target to earn credits that can be used in future years or sold to user suppliers which meet the requirements.
Australia is one of the few advanced economies with no NVES so far, leading new cars in Australia to consume 20% more fuel than those in the United States. In December 2023, the government introduced new fuel quality and noxious emissions standards, forcing SUVs and light commercial vehicles old from December 2025 to comply with Euro 6d noxious emissions standard. In addition, the amount of aromatic hydrocarbons in RON 95 petrol will be reduced.
Interested in Global Energy Research?
Enerdata's premium online information service provides up-to-date market reports on 110+ countries. The reports include valuable market data and analysis as well as a daily newsfeed, curated by our energy analysts, on the oil, gas, coal and power markets.
This user-friendly tool gives you the essentials about the domestic markets of your concern, including market structure, organisation, actors, projects and business perspectives.