High power prices may hit EV charging?

High wholesale power prices are hitting some major energy users but do not yet appear to have filtered through to EV charging.

The Better NZ Trust’s Donald Love says that from an EV owner perspective the current peak in wholesale prices has not been seen when on a residential power plan.

“Charging at home, often overnight on cheaper rates, only has the price adjusted at the time of contract renewal for the vast majority of owners,” Love says.

“While rates have risen recently, charging at home remains substantially cheaper than petrol, even when RUC (Road User Charge) is added. For public charging, the companies made adjustments many months ago.”

Since September 2021, wholesale prices have risen from around $100 per megawatt hour (MWh) to an average of around $700 per MWh this week, Radio New Zealand (RNZ) reports.

Electricity prices are also outlined in this story – Extreme electricity prices getting embedded | interest.co.nz.

The Major Electricity Users Group is meanwhile seeking solutions, especially into what is causing high wholesale power prices.