Worrying Signs For Queensland EV Take-up, As Household Costs Rise

Queenslanders still want to install solar PV systems, but as the cost of living – particularly energy – hits home, they’re showing less enthusiasm for buying electric vehicles.

That’s the result of a survey conducted by the state’s two Distributed Network Service Providers (DNSPs) – Ergon Energy, Energex, and Queensland’s transmission network Powerlink.

The study surveyed 4,200 Queensland households, covering a research panel of more than 3600 households and 541 recruited from online communities such as Facebook and the Talking Energy website.

At Talking Energy, the three electricity networks say:

“… households are starting to feel the impact of cost-of-living pressures, as more are now concerned about their ability to pay electricity bills than recorded in previous years.

 

Households are increasingly looking at ways to reduce consumption and change behaviour, with some even indicating a potential willingness to sacrifice reliability for reduced bills.

 

There is evidence that uptake of some new energy technologies has waned, although interest in technologies to manage consumption has remained steady.”

‘Solar Sponge’ Electricity Tariffs Gaining Popularity

Beset by past price increases and expecting further hikes, the survey found households are not only trying to reduce their consumption, but 47% are considering shifting to a daytime tariff that offers cheaper power when renewables on the grid are at their highest.

Biggest Barrier To Solar Uptake: Renting

With 26% of households considering solar power (44% already reported having an installation), interest in solar was steady. The main barrier to installing a PV system was 46% of participants live in rentals.

Cost Of Solar An Issue For Homeowners

Among homeowners in houses, the cost of solar panels was the most common reason for not considering it; cited by 46% of families, 35% of retirees in their own houses, and 32% of other homeowners in houses.

As at the beginning of July 2023, more than 962,990 small scale solar systems had been installed in Queensland.

EV Interest Falling

Cost of living pressures had their greatest impact on how people feel about electric vehicles. In last year’s survey, 50% of respondents were in the market for a new vehicle, and 71% of those were considering an EV. This year, both measures fell: only 45% of households were considering a new car, and only 60% of those were thinking of buying an EV.

Home Battery Interest Falling

The other big-ticket item impacted by the cost of living were solar batteries, with intentions of buying a home battery within ten years falling from 51% in the last survey to 47% this year.

Almost Half Of Consumers Open To Third Party Control

Consumption management remains popular: 47% of households would consider remote control of their energy usage, 45% want remote control of some appliances, and 28% would consider handing control off to a third party (such as their energy provider).