Budget to tackle climate change but short on EV incentives
Megan Woods.
Budget 2019 invests $27 million to establish the National New Energy Development Centre in Taranaki while helping New Zealand move towards clean, affordable, renewable energy and away from fossil fuels.
However, reports indicate the new budget doesn’t mention any “feebate” scheme or incentives for encouraging electric vehicle uptake as hoped for by EV advocates like Drive Electric.
Although a further $20 million over four years is designed to establish a new science research fund for cutting edge energy technology to study the likes of organic photovoltaics, super conductors, nanotechnologies and inductive power, says research, science and innovation minister Megan Woods.
Woods says the centre will work closely with industry to test and trial technologies across a range of new energy forms such as offshore wind, hydrogen, solar, batteries, geothermal, and waste-to-energy.
Budget 2019 allocates $157 million over four years into innovation, with initiatives to support businesses to become more productive and develop high value low-emissions products.
This includes $26 million over four years to help support, incubate and grow start-ups.
Woods says start-ups are the way New Zealand will continue to develop unique, world-first and ground-breaking ideas.
“Having sustained support will mean that innovators can more effectively commercialise science and research and turn ideas into products and services that can then be successfully brought to market.”
The Government is setting into law greenhouse gas reduction targets to meet the Paris Agreement goal of keeping temperature rise to no more than 1.5 degrees.
The budget provides $107 million to ensure the economic transition required to deliver those emission reductions is effective, efficient and just.
Climate change minister James Shaw says the funding will mean the Climate Change Commission can provide the advice, guidance and monitoring New Zealand needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in line with our goal of limiting global warming.
“The budget also includes funding to implement an Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auctioning platform. This is welcome as having an effective ETS is a vital component of achieving a just transition.”
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This is absolutely ridiculous. NZs “nuclear moment” and they come up with such a pathetic response.
Hi EV talk,
Given the funding in the budget covers the “Transition To A Sustainable And Low Emissions Economy” and the EV incentives were in the Low-emissions Economy (pg 281-319 for the transport section, including the freebate scheme) and a freebate scheme only requires administrative funding …You might want to directly ask the minister rather than just assuming nothing has changed.