Unison commits to 30% EV conversion

The Unison Group has committed to converting 30% of its corporate fleet of vehicles to electric in the next three years.

This forms part of a private sector electric vehicle (EV) initiative supported by government.

The initiative – co-led by Mercury Energy and Air New Zealand, and supported by Westpac – has seen 30 companies in New Zealand pledge to go electric. It will see more than 1450 vehicles on New Zealand roads within the next three years, and represent an uptake of more than 75%.

Unison Group chief executive Ken Sutherland says the company already has one electric vehicle as part of its corporate fleet comprising sedans and SUVs, and that it has been actively rolling out its public fast-charging stations for EVs across its network.

At this stage the commitment does not include conversion of the company’s utility vehicles or light trucks to electric, but Sutherland says Unison will continue to monitor developments in this area.

Unison attended last week’s launch event hosted by Mercury’s Fraser Whineray, Air New Zealand’s Christopher Luxon and Westpac’s David McLean. The objective of the event was to create critical mass in the business community to lead the way for EVs.

Companies that have made the collective pledge span energy, transport, telecommunications, waste and facilities management, and finance sectors.

Transport, energy and resources minister Simon Bridges presided at the event and reiterated that government aims to double the number of EVs on New Zealand roads each year to reach 64,000 by 2021.

“EVs are becoming increasingly affordable. They cost less than a third of the cost to run, and are cheaper to maintain than cars with combustion engines – all of which make EVs an appealing option for corporate businesses like Unison,” says Sutherland.

He adds that EVs – which are ideal for New Zealand because 80% of its electricity is produced from renewable energy sources – will assist government achieve its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 30% below 2005 levels by 2030.

For more information on government’s EV programme, visit transport.govt.nz/ourwork/climatechange/electric-vehicles.

For more information about EVs or Unison’s ‘Power Park’ charging stations, visit unison.co.nz/electric-vehicle-charging .