Keen on Electric Vehicles: Kiwi perspectives on electric vehicles, and opportunities to stimulate up

I have just published a report on a very hot topic at the moment, ‘Electric Vehicle uptake in New Zealand’.

New Zealand has nearly the highest ownership of cars in the world – around 700 light passenger vehicles per 1000 people. The transport sector consumes almost 40% of the energy used in NZ. Because almost all of this energy comes from petrol and diesel, transport use accounts for around 45% of New Zealand’s energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Understanding the potential growth of EVs in the New Zealand market is of great interest to a wide range of stakeholders. Aside from the direct impact on the new and used car markets, it could also reduce NZ’s dependence on oil imports, increase demand for electricity, and offer new opportunities for managing electricity demand in distribution networks.

The report demonstrates that there appears to be a strong latent appetite for EV’s, and the biggest barriers to uptake will be resolved as EVs continue to get cheaper and more advanced. However, Kiwis don’t tend to buy new cars, and hold on to their cars for a very long time, so the threat is that we get left behind the rest of the world because we take up EVs too slowly. And that would be a pity, as we have plenty of renewable electricity to power them, and Kiwis are keen.