Dr. Aoife O'Grady:

I have responsibility for the climate delivery division of which electric vehicle, EV, delivery is a part. I interpret the Deputy's question as being about research we might be conducting or work we are doing into the non-financial barriers to EV uptake. As Mr Ó Ciaruáin has said, there is still a cost differential. I think the Deputy suggested in his comment that people are still buying very expensive vehicles, when clearly they could afford to purchase an EV if they chose to do so. We are doing some research at the moment, which will inform our infrastructure strategy, on the perceptions of barriers to uptake for people who may be thinking about purchasing an EV. That research will report shortly. Our anticipation is that the perception of the need to charge and the reliability of EVs in terms of recharging distance might be an issue.

In the past six months since I took up my role in July 2021, the number of new vehicles that have come on the market has been astonishing. All of them will do 400 km to 500 km on a single charge and in some cases they will do up to 500 km or 600 km. What is happening now within the EV market is that many of those potentially higher-cost vehicles are becoming available as high-range EVs. I anticipate that over the coming years we will see a further shift within the market when many of the more expensive internal combustion engine vehicles will come on to the market as EV options and people will start to purchase them.

What is also happening this year in terms of consumer engagement and advice, as Mr. Ó Ciaruáin mentioned, is that we will establish the office for low-emitting vehicles. Part of its function will be to provide a price comparison and an objective one-stop shop of information for people who are interested in purchasing a new car. The provision of information on the differential between EV and non-EV, what one can get from an EV, the range one will be able to get and further information about the charging network we will deliver should tip that further in order that we see an increased EV uptake again.