Northland power cut impacts some EV charging

While Northpower and Top Energy did a great job of restoring power quickly after a power pylon toppled at Glorit, most EV chargers in the Northland area were off-line until about 4pm on June 20.

“The power board got power to main centres and feeders so many chargers came back online earlier,” says Whangarei EV advocate and Northland Regional Council rivers and natural hazards manager Joe Camuso, adding that as more grid-sized storage batteries, solar farms, and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and vehicle-to-load (V2L) vehicles become available the electricity grid will become more resilient.

“We did have someone who drove to Kaitaia from Whangarei and did not have enough range to return,” he says.

“Equally, EV owners with V2L or V2G were quite happy and gave more resilience.”

RNZ reckons Northland’s extensive power cut could cost the region $60 million, according to economics consultants Infometrics.

Nearly 100,000 properties were affected, says RNZ, adding that Energy Minister Simeon Brown has ordered a review of the Northland pylon collapse.