Sales of electric vehicles on Border region gain momentum but not surging

Calls of inquiry from curious would-be buyers, however, are "flooding in".

Every dealer The Border Mail spoke to cited "range anxiety" as the biggest hurdle for selling EVs in regional areas, but said enquiries were still coming in daily, not just from new car buyers but from those seeking respite from rising fuel costs.

Representatives from MG and Nissan also said supply problems meant that even if they managed to seal deals on greater numbers of EVs there would be delivery issues due to freight delays.

Australia's biggest seller of EVs, Tesla, which does not have a sales outlet in the Border region, was contacted by The Border Mail.

Albury-Wodonga MG general manager Anthony Mimmo said his outlet was selling an average of two fully electric cars a month.

"We're selling more hybrids because (limited) range is not seen as an issue with them," he said. "So, 'range anxiety' is the biggest deterrent for many people, especially in the regions.

"But EV inquiries have certainly stepped up, especially with the recent increase in fuel prices, people are looking for alternative options and, of course, everyone's looking to save money.

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"What we're finding with our particular EV is that for someone's main car, you start talking about charging infrastructure, it can be a hurdle, because if people want to go to Melbourne or Sydney or holiday to Queensland, there's that issue.

"And, even just driving around country towns, if you're going to Tumbarumba and back, there are charging points at Holbrook, and there are charging points at Walwa now, but they're not the rapid fast chargers."

McRae Nissan sales consultants Chris Smedley and Sharelle Bailey said the dealership sold about one fully electric Nissan Leaf a month, but was constantly fielding calls from people interested in them.

"A lot of that style of buyer, they're really optimal in terms of their usage of electric technology, you know they'll have solar panels on the roofs of their houses," Ms Bailey said.

Baker Motors co-owner David Baker said the dealership sold only a few EVs, mostly Hyundai and Mercedes-Benz models, but that they were "far away from the bread and butter " of the business.

"We do sell a few, but not a lot at this point, we'd have half a dozen EVs here in stock, but it's certainly not the bread and butter at this stage," he said.

"I think it will over time, but in probably any regional centre we've got range anxiety. People think 'this could be a challenge for us and our lifestyle'."

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