Toyota NZ welcomes Zero Carbon Bill

Toyota New Zealand says the Zero Carbon Bill put to parliament on May 8 is an urgently-needed piece of legislation to address climate change.

The company aims to reduce CO2 emissions from new vehicles by 90% by 2050 compared to 2010 levels.

To achieve this, Toyota is continuing to develop next-generation vehicles with low or zero CO2 emissions – hybrid, plug-in hybrid (PHEV), battery electric (BEV), and fuel cell vehicles (FCEV) – and encourage their adoption, Toyota NZ chief executive and SBC chair Alistair Davis says.

Every model in the Toyota and Lexus line-up available worldwide is expected to come with either a dedicated electrified model or with an electrified hybrid option by 2025.

“With transport emissions accounting for nearly 20% of all carbon output, we have a large influence on how New Zealand will progress to a zero-carbon economy,” Davis says.

“We and other businesses in New Zealand need a predictable legislative framework for carbon that gives us the certainty to make investment decisions that, ultimately, will be for the benefit of our country and the planet.”

As an original signatory to the Climate Leaders Coalition and long-time member of the Sustainable Business Council (SBC), Toyota NZ is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and sustainable business development, it says.

The Bill will provide the policy and framework to back the work that businesses around New Zealand are already doing voluntarily, Davis adds.

“As the brand which has nearly a quarter of all vehicles on New Zealand’s road, Toyota takes its responsibilities to customers and the environment very seriously.”

Since the 1970s Toyota has been involved in sustainable solutions and emissions reduction programmes.

In 1997, it was the first company to introduce a mass-market hybrid EV– the Prius, which combines petrol and electric power.

In April, Toyota revealed the first of its modern BEVs, expected to launch in China next year.

It plans to roll out more than 10 BEV models globally during the first half of the 2020s.