It seems completely implausible if you take a look at the roads, but electric cars could well become the norm in Malta in as soon as seven years’ time.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said yesterday that he wants Malta to be one of the first European countries to introduce a cut-off date for the importation of petrol and diesel vehicles.

“Air pollution has gone down enormously since we made the power generation switch from HFO to gas, and the pollution that remains is the result of traffic,” he said during an interview on ONE.

“There’s no two ways about it, we must reduce this pollution. This can’t be done from one day to the next but we will decide on a changeover date, set at seven to ten years’ from now, after which only electric vehicles and vehicles which run on other technologies will be allowed to enter Malta.”

Muscat also confirmed that talks are underway with Enemalta that would see electric car owners benefit from advantageous tariff rates when they charge their vehicles at home

“As it stands, electricity billing treats the charging of an electric car as it would the turning on of an air conditioner,” he said. “However, the reality is that electric car owners don’t charge their vehicles for their own comfort, but to safeguard the environment.”

Last week, Muscat floated a proposal for the electric car revolution to start in Gozo, with the cut-off date for the tiny island set earlier than that of Malta.

Are you excited about Malta’s potential future as an electric car nation?

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Tim Diacono

Tim is interested in the rapid evolution of human society and is passionate about justice, human rights and cutting-edge political debates. You can follow him on Instagram or Twitter/X at @timdiacono or reach out to him at [email protected]