EVs eligible for Crown loans

This story first appeared in the August issue of EVTalk – CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE

Did you know Crown loans are available for electric vehicles (EVs) in a bid to encourage uptake in the public sector?

But eligible organisations better be quick – the next funding round closes on September 20.

Crown loans are a low-cost, interest-free way to fund energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for publicly funded organisations such as schools, councils, universities and polytechnics, government departments and hospitals.

Such organisations are also eligible for Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) business funding support.

Loans can be used to fully or partially fund equipment that delivers carbon, energy and cost savings. Eligible projects include energy efficient equipment for new builds and retro-fit projects. In addition, Crown loans could help organisations considering EVs.

A one-off flat rate procurement fee of 6% covers the EECA’s establishment and loan administration costs.
Crown loans for EVs cover the price difference between an electric vehicle and a conventional one, and the cost of installing a charging point.

A lifecycle assessment of vehicles carried out for EECA by international experts found an all-electric vehicle had a 60% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions across its life (from manufacture to disposal) and an 80% reduction in emissions in use in New Zealand compared to a petrol or diesel vehicle (www.eeca.govt.nz/ev).

Immediate benefits to public sector fleets are significantly lower running costs because of higher energy efficiency (resulting in the petrol-equivalent energy costs of about 30c per litre, residential off-peak) and lower maintenance costs (fewer moving parts compared to a petrol or diesel-powered vehicle).
Improved resilience of the fleet operations comes through using energy from a totally different, locally produced supply chain.

There’s also better forecasting of fleet running costs because electricity charges are much more stable than petrol and diesel costs.

An exemption from road user charges (RUC) for light vehicles applies until 2021.

The RUC exemption has been expanded to heavy electric vehicles as part of the government’s EV programme.

See eecabusiness.govt.nz for details and click here for a video.