First step towards planned EV transition welcomed

Drive Electric welcomes the government’s announcement of a ‘Clean Car Import Standard’, saying it’s the first step toward a planned EV transition.

This is a sign of what’s to come, Drive Electric chair Mark Gilbert says.

“We’re out of the starting blocks but there’s still a few hurdles to overcome, says Gilbert, suggesting a complete bipartisan action plan is required.

He also expects more to come from the Climate Change Commission’s February 1 release of its draft advice plan relating to emissions.

 “The standards being proposed for 2025 have already been met in other comparable markets, like the EU and Japan, and must be achievable here,” Gilbert says.

“The standard is a useful tool in that it asks importers to look at the portfolio of vehicles they are importing, which should increase low emissions choice across a range of vehicle types and price points. With more EVs coming into New Zealand, this also increases the second-hand market over time.

“That said, such a standard is really just a first step towards managing a transition away from fossil fuel vehicles and towards no emissions vehicles.”

Drive Electric says its analysis for New Zealand to meet its legislated climate ambitions shows the need to aim for at least 250,000 EVs on the roads by 2025, and for this trend to continue through to 2030.

“As the prime minister and minister Wood have indicated to achieve our ambitions, much more will need to be done in transport,” Gilbert says.

“This is especially the case, because our transport emissions continue to rise.”

Gilbert says that first up should be a look at announcing a date for ending importation of fossil fuel vehicles, suggested at around 2035 in a newly released study.

“To support such ambition, we need a joint plan between the government and industry to ensure we have the right package of policy settings, the necessary investment in charging infrastructure, and coordination among all the players through the EV ecosystem – from the grids, to electricity retailers, to car importers, councils and property developers,” Gilbert adds.

“Policies that need to be considered include incentives, adjustments to fringe benefit taxes and depreciation, and investment to ensure we are ready for more at-home charging and public charging.

“We are confident that when the Climate Change Commission announces its draft budgets on February 1, we will see the case for decarbonising transport made starkly clear, and the need for a coordinated plan.”

The government’s commitment to introduce emission reduction incentives is also welcomed by Motor Industry Association (MIA) chief executive David Crawford who is keen to see more details on how these will work.

But he is concerned about the speed of the CO2 targets for vehicles entering New Zealand which he says should be changed from 2025 to 2030 to allow time for model development, vehicle sourcing arrangements and does not recognise that for many New Zealand distributors their model choice is tied to the Australian market.

“The MIA has stated on many occasions that we support well thought out and constructive policies that will lead to an increased rate in the reduction of CO2 emissions from the light vehicle fleet,” Crawford adds.

“However, while we believe the fuel economy standard is necessary, the speed at which we must reach the average target of 105 grams of CO2 per km is the most aggressive and severe in the world,” he says.

“No other country has ever had to face a 40% rate of reduction in five years that we now must meet.

“Contrary to the views of government, the 2025 target date does not allow time for model development, vehicle sourcing arrangements and does not recognise that for many distributors in New Zealand their model choice is tied to the Australian market. With no similar policy required in Australia, our market, which represents just 0.018% of new vehicle production in any one year, is too small for manufactures to develop models just for us.”

MIA also wants to see the rules the same for both new and used imported vehicles.

Giving used imported vehicles softer penalties will lead to an increase in older, less safe vehicles entering New Zealand, it says.