Polluters pay more under CCD changes

Hybrids lose their Clean Car rebate and high emissions vehicles pay more under newly announced changes to the Clean Car Discount (CCD) designed to ensure the scheme remains financially sustainable.

EV advocacy group Drive Electric welcomes continuation of the CCD – including the changes from July 1 – saying the policy is delivering emissions reductions and saving money on fossil fuels.

“The Clean Car Discount has turned New Zealand from a laggard to a leader when it comes to EV adoption,” says Drive Electric chair Mark Gilbert.

Its March analysis shows the reduction in emissions of vehicles imported since the policy came into effect will save more than two million tonnes of emissions over the lives of those vehicles, and $100m a year in petrol and diesel.

“The Climate Change Commission has recently confirmed that incentives are necessary to continue to ensure the adoption of EVs,” says Gilbert.

“While we’ve made some great progress increasing new EV sales, at the end of 2022 there were still only 65,000 registered EVs. This is still just 1.5% of the entire vehicle fleet. There’s more to do.”

Gilbert says research shows the CCD is popular with Kiwis.

“So let’s keep it going until we get close to price parity between EVs and petrol cars.

“This discount won’t be needed forever – perhaps only another few years. In the meantime, it makes sense for the government to make the design of the scheme fiscally neutral.”

Gilbert says the CCD changes appear designed to encourage even cleaner vehicles entering the NZ fleet.

“This will mean more PHEVs (plug-in hybrids) and BEVs (battery electric vehicles) coming in and over time fewer petrol and diesel vehicles.

“For those who do move to EV, they will find their running costs substantially lower.”

Gilbert says that while incentives have also been increased on secondhand EVs, supply of these vehicles from overseas is a real challenge.

“This is because EVs are a relatively new technology. 

“Therefore we will need more secondhand EVs that are New Zealand-new to ensure a wide range of New Zealanders can access e-mobility.

“Additional EVs brought in today under this scheme, are future secondhand vehicles.”

Gilbert says recent policy changes have ended ideas like social leasing and scrappage schemes, so new ideas are needed to enable all New Zealanders to access EVs.

“One idea would be to look at policy encouraging corporate fleet owners to take up EVs, as these fleets usually have lifespans of two to four years before they are sold.”

Visit AutoTalk for more on this story.