New fuel efficiency standards announced by the federal government will help fuel costs for farmers in the long run.
The new laws, announced by the federal government over the weekend, will mean car companies must supply more fuel-efficient vehicles to consumers by targets set on the average emissions per kilometre for new cars sold.
She Oaks beef farmer Peter Stray said fuel was becoming a significant expense for him and welcomed the new standards.
"Anything that can bring the cost down in regards to fuel will be beneficial to us as farmers," he said.
"Being able to get a higher standard of electrical vehicle coming and efficient hybrids will make it much better."
Mr Stray is not currently using an electric ute and said they did not have the range necessary for his operation.
He hopes the new standards - set to be in effect January 2025 - will change that and is currently taking steps to install a charging station on his property, using solar panels on the roof of a shed.
"I think for farmers, we've all got big sheds we can put solar panels on, coupled to a battery and have a charging station wouldn't be ultra fast or anything that that the wider community requires, but it can be good to drive our utes during the day and charge overnight," he said.
Latrobe Valley advocacy group Voices of the Valley spokeswoman Wendy Farmer, Moe, said regional areas through Gippsland were embracing electric vehicles.
"It is a growing market, and a year ago it was rare to see electric vehicles around the region, but now it's very common to be driving parts and other electric vehicles," she said.
She said previous standards made Australia "a dumping ground" for high-emission vehicles, and misinformation was being spread about the capacity of new electric vehicles.
"We have a tow bar on one of our electric vehicles, and it can do all the things other utes can do," she said.
"Right now, there are farmers using electric tractors on their properties, and they're working just fine."
Nationals leader David Littleproud told Sky News that the automotive industry needed to be involved in discussions about the changes and that considerations needed to be made for a small Australian market.
"We've got to be careful about the measures we take. I think technology will get there, and we've just got to be careful that we don't expedite ideological views where technology can't support it," he said.
Mr Littleproud said there were "some exemptions put in some of the discussion papers around agricultural products", but reducing emissions needed to be done sensibly "without discriminating against people that are living in remote and regional areas."
Farmers for Climate Action chief executive Natalie Collard said people living in regional areas should have the right to choose more fuel-efficient vehicles.
She referred to a study by Solar Citizens, based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data that found regional drivers would save $4 billion over the next five years in reduced fuel costs as more fuel-efficient car models became available in the country.
"Drivers in the Hunter region alone are set to save $122 million over the next five years, drivers in the Bendigo region $77 million, and drivers in the Hume region (north east Victoria) a combined $99 million," she said.
"There are electric utes being sold overseas with ranges of up to 800 kilometres and acceleration of up to 100km/hr in three seconds. We'd like to see those utes here."
The new standards come as farmers plan to protest tomorrow in Canberra over wider renewable energy projects on prime agricultural land, while farmers who support renewables lobbied politicians today.
