Why EVs? A Comparison of Alternative Fuels to Help Australia Regain Energy Security

Abstract

It is widely understood that the Australian way of life is now largely dependent on imported oil and petroleum products. Over 80% of the liquid fuel required to power the 13.8 million passenger vehicles and 4.6 million other service vehicles is derived from foreign sources. This has two major impacts: firstly, it means the responsibility for delivering a secure supply of fuel for domestic Australian transport is in the hands of foreign agents beyond our borders and is therefore not under the control of our government; secondly, there is a cost to the Australian economy and individual Australian transport users, to import these fuel products in increasing volumes to meet domestic demand when local fuel resources and refining capacities are diminishing every year. Hence, there are growing concerns as to whether the reduced energy security and increasing economic cost of this dependence on foreign oil is in the best interests of Australian citizens, particularly when alternative domestic fuel supplies exist.

This paper aims to compare and quantify the different qualities of several new and potentially viable alternative fuel systems and technologies which could play a role in improving energy security in Australia. In particular, the current costs and benefits of a continued reliance on imported oil and petroleum products are compared to the characteristics of natural gas fuel systems, both compressed (CNG) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), alongside those of hydrogen (H₂) fuel cell technology, biofuel development, improved public transport infrastructure and electric vehicles (EVs).

Of these alternatives, electric vehicles have perhaps received the most support from government and industry sectors in recent years. The potential synergies between EVs and renewable energy are investigated, with particular focus on residential PV systems that can utilize battery storage and vehicle-to-home (V2H) or vehicle-to-grid (V2G) connections for either vehicle or residential battery charging. The coincident development of EV and RE technologies and their ideological interaction suggest that any potential growth in EV uptake may lead to a simultaneous growth in renewable energy capacity in the coming decades. This prospect indicates that adequate planning of network infrastructure for the NEM and SWIS will be required to account for both the increasing proportion of renewable energy in the market and the interconnection with an increasing number of EVs.