NZ must plan for EVs

Further improvements to EV battery technology announced at the Tesla Battery Day event in California have prompted Drive Electric to urge New Zealand to be ready.

“With advances in battery technologies we are heading towards the tipping point where EVs are as cheap or cheaper than traditional combustion engines,” Drive Electric chair Mark Gilbert says.

“Car manufacturers are literally racing to develop high capacity batteries to capture the EV market.

“New Zealand is a technology taker, and we must get ready for a swing to EVs.

“That means we need a plan to support New Zealand’s transition to EVs.”

Gilbert says The Guardian reports  the United Kingdom is poised to bring forward its ban on new fossil fuel vehicles from 2040 to 2030.

“These are part of new clean energy policies to help spark a green economic recovery,” he adds.

“In New Zealand a bipartisan motor industry plan should include policies to support businesses and consumers to make the transition, investment in charging infrastructure, and setting ambitious targets.“

Bernstein Research shows that Tesla has helped lower battery costs from more than US$600kW/h to around US$150kWh today.

Batteries costing around US$100kWh would put the cost of an electric car on par with a petrol-powered vehicle.

And Tesla has announced plans to develop a ‘tabless’ battery, which it would manufacture in house to reduce the cost per kilowatt-hour.

This new battery can result in five-times more energy capacity, a 16% range increase, and six times more power, Gilbert explains.

This comes as the New York Times reports that price parity between EVs and petrol vehicles could come as early as 2023 – previously anticipated in 2025.

“Decarbonising our cars is probably the most important thing we can do over the next 10 years to meet our climate ambitions, and slow the warming of the planet,” Gilbert says.

“Analysis done for Drive Electric shows we need 250,000 new EVs on New Zealand roads by 2025, and for this level of uptake to continue, to meet climate targets.”