West named 2020 Sustainability Superstar

ChargeNet founder Steve West has been named the 2020 Sustainability Superstar in the Sustainable Business Awards announced this week.

The Sustainability Superstar, sponsored by NZI, is the major honour in the awards which celebrate success in sustainability.

It goes to a person who inspires and leads others to make a difference and who “walks the sustainability talk.”

West founded ChargeNet which is the largest privately-owned fast-charging network for electric vehicles (EVs) in the southern hemisphere and has become a catalyst for accelerating the growth of EVs in New Zealand.

When he started ChargeNet in 2015, there were 500 EVs registered in NZ and no fast charging network. Today, there are 22,000 EVs and ChargeNet has more than 324 chargers across the country.

“This has made it possible to travel the length and breadth of NZ in an EV, with ever-increasing ease and it is helping our transition to a low carbon economy,” says the award announcement.

“Steve has put massive investment into rolling out a nationwide network of fast charging stations. This has given equipment manufacturers and importers the confidence to import many more EVs and motivated drivers to buy them.

“Steve has lent his personal fleet of EVs to friends, politicians, journalists and public figures in the belief that if you try an EV you are likely to be a convert.

“He gives his time to display his vehicles and speak at conferences and events around the country.”
West also co-founded the Better NZ Trust, to educate and create opportunities for New Zealanders to live more sustainably.

He’s a member of the Drive Electric Board, which lobbies the Government on EVs, and the Electric Vehicles Programme Leadership Group.