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  The local price for the i-MiEV hasn't been decided, but Mitsubishi says it will be less than what is currenlty being asked overseas.

The price of the first full-production electric vehicle in Australia won?t be cheap ? at first.

The Mitsubishi i-MiEV’s price has not yet been decided, but it is expected to hit the showrooms next year at a cost substantially lower than its current asking price overseas of about $60,000.

Mitsubishi Motors Australia corporate affairs vice-president Paul Stevenson confesses that the price of the i-MiEV "will be expensive up front". However, when the first two vehicles rolled off the ship at the Port of Brisbane recently, outgoing Mitsubishi boss Rob McEniry said it would not be as expensive or as big a premium over comparative-sized cars as the hybrid Toyota Prius.

"I can't tell you what the price is yet, but the price of electric vehicles is coming down rapidly and that is why we are cautious of saying the price now," McEniry said. "When it gets into volume production it will be affordable - not much more expensive than comparative-sized cars. But running costs will make them cheaper over the whole of the life of the vehicle."

Stevenson says Mitsubishi Motors Australia has not been able to get a commitment on volume from Japan yet, which hampered their decision on price.

"The thing is that over time and not a lot of time as the volume ramps up production meets demand," he says. "At the moment demand outstrips supply so the price is high. As volume ramps up we will see that price decrease."

He cited the example of plasma TV technology. "In 2003 a 40-inch plasma TV cost about $27,000 and now they are about $800," he says.

Stevenson says government incentives could also help reduce the price and encourage people to go to EV.

"Mitsubishi is not talking to government with any numeric value in mind, but we are speaking about policy issues," he says. "In France (EV motorists) can use transit lanes, they have special parking spaces and new office blocks have to have recharging infrastructure in place. In Paris there is a range of free public EV charging points for cars and scooters. The Japan government subsidises half the premium over the compatible petrol model and in UK they are offering a $10,000 subsidy for each EV."