SYDNEY (Reuters) – Tesla (NASDAQ:) said on Thursday it was leaving Australia’s main auto lobby and its board of directors, accusing the group of misleading consumers about the government’s proposed fuel efficiency standards and the potential impact on prices for cars.
In a letter to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industry of Australia (FCAI), Tesla said the country’s largest auto industry body had “repeatedly made statements that are patently false.”
“Tesla is also concerned that it is inappropriate for FCAI to predict or coordinate whether and how competing brands will implement price changes in response to environmental regulations,” the U.S. electric vehicle market leader said.
Tesla said it had asked Australia’s competition regulator to investigate the FCAI’s comments.
The FCAI, which includes top executives from major auto brands, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Tesla said it would end its membership in June.
Until recently, Australia was the only developed country other than Russia that either did not have fuel efficiency standards or was developing them.
The current centre-left Labor government, which comes to power in 2022, plans to develop a fuel efficiency model that aims to cap the average carbon dioxide emissions from new cars sold from next year.
This could encourage manufacturers to ship more electric vehicles to Australia and further speed up adoption, bringing the country in line with standards found in most other developed countries.
On Wednesday, the FCAI said the government has decided to introduce a fuel efficiency standard from January 1, 2025, with “extremely aggressive targets and stringent penalties to come into force within a very short time frame.”
According to the FCAI, this could cause significant disruption to large sectors of the industry and result in fewer choices and higher prices for consumers.
The government has completed consultation on its preferred model and intends to introduce legislation later this year.