A new report from the Federal Government says Australia could become the leading producer of electric cars within the next decade.

But with Japan, Europe and the US so far ahead with this technology, how realistic are these predictions?

Experts say the electric car could become a common sight on our roads in the next few years.

The Federal government announced a six billion dollar car industry assistance package last year, which includes grants for the production of so called "green cars".

2SER's Jessica Bineth spoke to Conal Horgan from the Institute for Sustainable Futures, at UTS, about the report and the impacts the electric car is likely to make.